CONVALESCENCE study
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Characterisation, determinants, mechanisms and consequences of the long-term effects of COVID-19: providing the evidence base for health care services. (The remote assessment and deep phenotyping work package).
IRAS ID
297578
Contact name
Nish Chaturvedi
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
University College London
Clinicaltrials.gov Identifier
Z6364106/2021/06/04 , UCL Data Protection number
Duration of Study in the UK
3 years, 0 months, 1 days
Research summary
SARS-CoV-2 is a novel coronavirus responsible for the on-going pandemic (COVID-19). This virus causes severe illness in humans. Around 90% of people with COVID-19 (C-19) infection are not admitted to hospital: many have minimal or no symptoms. Most recover completely, but a meaningful number report persistent and disabling physical and mental health symptoms - post-COVID-19 syndrome, popularly termed ‘long-COVID’.
The aim of the study is to answer a number of patient defined questions:
What is long-COVID and how is it diagnosed?
What effects will long-COVID have on individuals health, ability to work and family? What are the chances of recovery?Our understanding of long-COVID, including how best to diagnose, risk factors, health and economic consequences, is poor, limiting efforts to help patients.
In this study we are planning a longitudinal clinic-based data collection to track persistent symptoms, and identify associated underlying physiological factors that explain these on-going symptoms. Detailed clinical and sub-clinical phenotyping in C-19 will provide insight into potential chronic effects that could present increased risk of future clinical events.
The findings may ultimately lead to identification of novel clinical targets that mitigate persistent CoV-2 symptoms. Findings may also be more widely relevant to other disease conditions characterised by on-going fatigue.
In addition, participants with long-COVID from the studies will be involved in shaping the diagnostic tools for long-COVID, and aiding our understanding of determinants of recovery, and responses to therapy.
We will share findings with bodies involved in guidelines (NICE, who are also part of this project), with government (via the Chief Scientific Advisor), with the public via social media and other outputs, and the scientific community via research publications.
REC name
South Central - Oxford A Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
21/SC/0235
Date of REC Opinion
12 Jul 2021
REC opinion
Favourable Opinion