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March 15 is International Long COVID Awareness Day

March 15 marks International Long COVID Awareness Day, a time to raise awareness and amplify the voices of millions worldwide who continue to suffer from the prolonged effects of COVID-19.

Graphic including the following key points: Up to 400 million people worldwide are affected by Long COVID. The economic impact is $1 trillion annually, which is about 1% of the global economy. Long COVID affects men, women, and children. There is a citation at the bottom referencing a study by Al-Aly, Z., et al. (2024) from Nature Medicine.

The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine (NASEM) have defined Long COVID as “an infection-associated chronic condition (IACC) that occurs after SARS-CoV-2 infection and is present for at least 3 months as a continuous, relapsing and remitting, or progressive disease state that affects one or more organ systems.”

Long COVID can present with a variety of symptoms, ranging from mild to severe. It can impact one or more systems, including the immune, cardiovascular, and neurological systems.

With over 200 reported symptoms, diagnosis can be difficult, leaving many searching for answers. These symptoms can drastically alter lives, forcing people to leave jobs, limit daily activities, and navigate a healthcare system that is still catching up. 

Some of the most common symptoms, like persistent fatigue, post-exertional malaise, brain fog, and sleep disturbance, are similar to those reported by people with ME/CFS (myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome).

This image is an awareness badge for Long COVID. It features a teal and gray ribbon with the text "Long COVID" across it. Surrounding the ribbon is a teal circle with the words "LONG COVID AWARENESS" at the top and "#LONGCOVIDAWARENESS2025" at the bottom.

On Long COVID Awareness Day, we recognize the millions who are still waiting for answers. Their voices matter. Their experiences fuel research. And their stories remind us why this work is urgent.

Be Part of the Solution

Join OMF StudyME Registry

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OMF StudyME is a free global participants registry designed to connect individuals interested in participating in research studies with the researchers conducting them.

It is our firm belief that the path to groundbreaking discoveries and meaningful advancements in treatment lies in ensuring that people with Long COVID are not only heard but are also active participants in the research.

Join StudyME
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Support OMF’s quest to find effective treatments and diagnostic tests for the millions of people affected by Long COVID! Consider making a donation today to support our ongoing efforts.

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Amplify your impact by launching a personal fundraising campaign. Engage your network on social media and turn your passion into tangible support for Long COVID research. Kick off a digital fundraiser in 5 minutes or less.

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Thank you for joining us in our mission to combat Long COVID and provide hope for a brighter future. Together, we can make a difference. 

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Microvesicles and viral sequencing
Microvesicles are a type of extracellular vesicle that is released from the cell membrane. Vesicles are small, fluid-filled sacs or vacuoles within the body. Sequencing is a technique used to determine the exact sequence of bases (A, C, G, and T) in a DNA (or viral) molecule.
NMR Metabolomics
NMR (Nuclear Magnetic Resonance) is an instrument/tool used to perform metabolic studies, metabolic profiling, and metabolomics in biofluids and tissues for more than 40 years using magnetic fields. There is a very close connection between metabolic measurements and NMR. This connection has flourished because of NMR’s many unique strengths for characterizing complex mixtures’ chemical composition.
Proteomics
The large-scale study of proteins, which are large, complex molecules that are required for structure, function, and regulation of the human body's tissues and organs.
Autoantibodies
Antibodies that react with self-molecules and that occur in healthy individuals and are referred to as natural antibodies or autoantibodies.
Extracellular DNA for viral reactivation and Mitochondrial DNA
exDNA (extracellular DNA), exDNA is often secreted actively and is used to perform several tasks, thereby offering an attractive target or tool for biotechnological, medical, environmental, and general microbiological applications. Viruses are intracellular parasites that rely to a significant extent on the host cell for replication. Viral reactivation occurs when an active replication of the viral genome results in a lytic (degradation of the cell) infection characterized by the release of new progeny (descendant) virus particles.
Immune cell profiling
The immune system has many important regulatory roles in disease development and progression. Given the emergence of effective immune therapies, reliable predictors of response are needed. Immune cell profiling determines response by evaluating immune cell populations from treated and untreated samples. For our purposes, we will evaluate the white blood cell response to the viral infection using a process called “Cytof.”
Leukocyte Genomics
A leukocyte is a colorless cell circulating in the blood and body fluids and is involved in counteracting foreign substances and disease. A genome is all genetic material of an organism. Genomics is a biology field focusing on the structure, function, evolution, mapping, and editing of genomes. Therefore, leukocyte genomics is the study of all genetic material of leukocytes.
Metabolomics
Metabolomics is a way to study metabolism – that is, through measuring amounts of the metabolites (small molecules) produced by our bodies as we convert food into energy and other molecules that our cells need to survive. Metabolomics technology is ‘large-scale,’ meaning that several thousand metabolites can be measured from a single sample of e.g., blood or urine.
Micro RNA
Cells use Micro RNA to control whether a particular gene is making too much, too little or the normal amount of its protein at a particular time.