Women appear to be twice as likely to develop prolonged Covid symptoms than men, but only up to age 60, after which the level of risk becomes similar.
Advanced age and a higher body mass index also appear to be risk factors for having Long Covid, but "recently, the persistence of symptoms following the initial diagnosis of acute Covid-19 has also been demonstrated in pediatric age" .
An in-depth study published by the Istituto Superiore di Sanità (Iss) takes stock of the scientific knowledge available.
Similar to some post-infectious syndromes that followed the Chikungunya and Ebola outbreaks, Long Covid is characterized by a series of symptoms that persist for more than two months beyond the normal recovery period, such as persistent fatigue, headache, lack of shortness of breath, loss of smell, muscle weakness, fever, tachycardia, intestinal disorders and skin rash.
On this condition, the ISS experts specify, "there are few data, divided by sex, on the incidence and only on the adult population".
Compared to the factors responsible for this syndrome, an autoimmune reaction induced by the virus itself.
The Sars-Cov-2, in fact, "could have some similarities with components of the organism (molecular mimicry) and thus generate antibodies that can also react against our organs or tissues causing the described manifestations." The autoimmune hypothesis - concludes ISS - could justify the higher incidence of this syndrome in women ".
In fact, the immune response is generally stronger in women and causes more severe forms of the disease in men but more frequent autoimmune reactions in women.