‘Long colds’ just as common as long COVID and can leave ‘prolonged symptoms’
‘Long colds’ can be just as common as long COVID, scientists have discovered.
A study found people experienced prolonged symptoms after having respiratory infections such as colds, flu and pneumonia – in the same way they might after getting COVID.
Common symptoms of a “long cold” include coughing, stomach pain and diarrhoea lasting for more than a month.
Long COVID patients were more likely to suffer lightheadedness, dizziness and problems with taste and smell.
They also experienced heart palpitations, sweating and hair loss.
Some symptoms overlapped, including breathlessness and fatigue.
Researchers at the Queen Mary University of London analysed data from 10,171 adults in the UK for the study, which has been published the The Lancet’s EClinicalMedicine journal.
The findings suggested “there may be long-lasting health impacts following non-COVID acute respiratory infections such as colds, influenza or pneumonia, that are currently going unrecognised”, they said.
However, more research is needed to establish whether the symptoms can last for the same or a similar duration to long COVID – and why some people suffer more than others.
Having a more serious illness can increase the chances of having long-term health issues, the study found.
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The data was collected as part of the university’s “Covidence UK” national study of COVID-19, which was launched in 2020.
Chief investigator, professor Adrian Martineau, said the findings could resonate with people who have struggled with long-term symptoms after having a respiratory infection, despite testing negative for COVID using a nose or throat swab.
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Long COVID to ‘damage multiple organs’
He highlighted the importance of ongoing research to help “get to the root of why some people experience more prolonged symptoms than others”.
“Ultimately this could help us to identify the most appropriate form of treatment and care for affected people,” he added.
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Long COVID: ‘I have lost my identity’
Lead author Giulia Vivaldi from Queen Mary University of London said: “Our findings shine a light not only on the impact of long COVID on people’s lives, but also other respiratory infections.
“A lack of awareness – or even the lack of a common term – prevents both reporting and diagnosis of these conditions.
“As research into long COVID continues, we need to take the opportunity to investigate and consider the lasting effects of other acute respiratory infections.
“These ‘long’ infections are so difficult to diagnose and treat primarily because of a lack of diagnostic tests and there being so many possible symptoms.
“There have been more than 200 (symptoms) investigated for long COVID alone.”
Thousands of people are battling the debilitating effects of long COVID after the pandemic
The study looked at people’s symptoms after their initial infection, using standardised questionnaires.
The longest time from initial infection to reports of ongoing symptoms was 37 weeks for non-COVID infections and 64 weeks for people with COVID.
Post-viral illness is not a new phenomenon, Ms Vivaldi added, but existing research has focused primarily on people who survived a severe infection, often having been hospitalised.
Long COVID has shown people can be plagued by lingering symptoms irrespective of the severity of their infection, she said.
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Around 1.9m people in the UK are thought to be living with long COVID.
A study in September found a third of long COVID patients sustained damage to multiple organs five months after infection.
Scans of patients who received hospital treatment for the virus showed higher rates of damage to the lungs, brain and kidneys.
Sky News’ technology correspondent Rowland Manthorpe documented his struggle after suffering long COVID for more than 18 months.
He said the condition had ‘ruined his life’, leaving him with crippling fatigue and brain fog.
Research in January found long COVID sufferers who had a mild bout of the virus should expect their symptoms to resolve within a year.
An experimental drug offered the hope of significantly reducing fatigue in people with long COVID.
Liverpool have won the Premier League title after a 5-1 victory over Tottenham at Anfield.
Arne Slot’s men did it in impressive style, turning over Spurs in a convincing win.
It was a rocky start for the Reds after Dominic Solanke put the north London side ahead.
However, fortunes quickly changed in the first half as Liverpool scored three times without a response.
Captain Virgil van Dijk (centre) celebrates. Pic: Reuters
Salah on his knees in celebration after the final whistle. Pic: AP
Liverpool’s Harvey Elliott (below) and Jarell Quansah celebrate after full-time. Pic: PA
Slot cheers after the full-time whistle. Pic: AP
In the second half, it took until the 63rd minute for Mohamed Salah to make it 4-1 before a fifth followed.
The Reds have won the title in manager Arne Slot’s first season in charge, and move level with fierce rivals Manchester United on 20 league championships.
But it makes them arguably the most successful English club ever as they have won more European Cup or Champions League titles.
Liverpool captain Virgil van Dijk told Sky Sports after the final whistle: “It’s special and it’s something that we don’t take for granted. It’s amazing.
“A lot of emotions before the game, during the whole week, but we got the job done and we (are) truly deserved champions of England. (Liverpool is) the most beautiful club in the world and I think we deserve all of this. Let’s enjoy the next couple of weeks and let it sink in.”
Liverpool’s Kostas Tsimikas poses with a Premier League trophy cut out. Pic: Reuters
Manager Arne Slot and his team after the final whistle. Pic: AP
Slot took over last summer from Jurgen Klopp, who guided them to their previous and maiden Premier League title triumph in 2020, when the COVID-19 lockdown saw matches played behind closed doors.
He is the first Dutch manager to win the Premier League and the fifth man to do so in a debut campaign after Jose Mourinho, Carlo Ancelotti, Manuel Pellegrini, and Antonio Conte.
Speaking to Sky Sports he said: “They [the players] did an outstanding job today. The main job was to win. Everyone said we had got it already. But we had to make sure and we got over the line.”
Several players, including Alisson Becker, Trent Alexander-Arnold, Virgil van Dijk, and Mohamed Salah, played leading roles in both the 2025 and 2020 campaigns.
Van Dijk and Salah recently signed new contracts extending their careers at the club.
Mohamed Salah takes a selfie with fans after scouring the fourth Liverpool goal. Pic: AP
Fans at Anfield during the game. Pic: AP
Fans in the stands at Anfield before full-time. Pic: Reuters
Liverpool will have to wait until the final game of the season – at home to Crystal Palace on 25 May – to be presented with the Premier League trophy.
It will be the first time the club’s fans will have seen their side lift the top-flight title in person since 1990.
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Two pro-Palestinian demonstrators have thrown red powder on Tower Bridge – just moments before leading runners in the London Marathon went past.
The protesters were arrested on suspicion of causing a public nuisance and remain in custody, said the Metropolitan Police.
A video shared by Youth Demand, which is calling for a trade embargo on Israel, shows two people jumping over a barrier that separates spectators from the race course.
The pair, wearing t-shirts that say “Youth Demand: Stop Arming Israel”, are then seen standing in the middle of the road on the bridge.
Pic: LNP
They throw red powder in the air as an official marathon car goes past displaying the race time.
A motorbike with a cameraman on board continues along the route, while a second motorbike stops and one of the riders gets off and pushes the pair out of the way, just before the men’s elite runners pass.
Several police officers then jump over the barrier and detain the pair, the footage shows.
There appeared to be no impact on the marathon.
More than 56,000 participants were expected to take part in the 26.2-mile race through the capital.
Sabastian Sawe of Kenya won the men’s elite race in a time of two hours, two minutes and 27 seconds, while Ethiopia’s Tigst Assefa shattered the women’s-only world record in two hours, 15 minutes and 50 seconds.
Assefa beat the previous best of two hours, 16 minutes and 16 seconds set last year in London by Kenyan Peres Jepchirchir.
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Pic: LNP
The Metropolitan Police said in a statement: “At around 10.38am, two protesters from Youth Demand jumped over barriers at Tower Bridge and threw red paint on to the road.
“Marathon event staff intervened to remove the protesters from the path of the men’s elite race which was able to pass unobstructed.”
The force added that they were “quickly supported by police officers who arrested the protesters on suspicion of causing a public nuisance”.
The Met said the paint “appeared to be chalk-based” and was not expected to “present a hazard to runners yet to pass this point”.
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