Aktueller Stand der Long/Post-COVID-Therapie

The sequelae of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus type 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infections can severely affect the quality of life of patients, with symptoms such as chronic fatigue, exercise intolerance, dyspnea and cognitive dysfunction. The complexity of post-coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) syndrome poses a major challenge not only in terms of narrowing down the pathophysiological foundations but also with respect to initiating targeted and effective treatment. Due to the high level of distress experienced by those affected, in the absence of therapeutic alternatives various procedures such as plasmapheresis, lipoprotein apheresis and immunoadsorption are used to alleviate post-COVID-19 symptoms such as fatigue and exercise intolerance; however, the efficacy of these procedures in post-COVID-19 syndrome has not yet been sufficiently investigated. The currently ongoing randomized, placebo-controlled studies aim to investigate the effect of immunoadsorption treatment on chronic fatigue and other parameters as well as to identify biomarkers of response to treatment.