Babbage: What causes long covid?

Soon after the pandemic began, another health crisis started to emerge. Long covid now affects millions of people around the world. But finding the causes of the condition—and how to treat it—has been a challenge. Three years after the SARS-CoV-2 virus was first detected, are scientists any closer to understanding long covid?

Natasha Loder, The Economist’s health policy editor, explores the latest research into the condition, and catches up with Tom Stayte, a patient we met in 2020. Jason Hosken, our producer, visits Britain’s first long-covid clinic at University College London Hospital. Melissa Heightman, the team’s clinical lead, explains how to treat symptoms. Plus, we ask whether the hunt to solve this medical mystery could have implications for other chronic conditions. Alok Jha hosts.

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