The German National Cohort (NAKO) makes it possible to record the prevalence of Long COVID and to extend this to the broader concept of post-acute infection syndrome (PAIS). PAIS can occur following infection with SARS-CoV-2 as well as following other viral infections. Unlike studies that only recruit new participants at the time of infection, the long-term nature of the NAKO allows health data collected prior to infection to be included. This makes it possible to identify potential causes and risk factors that could contribute to the development of PAIS, and to derive targeted, personalised prevention strategies from this.
Furthermore, the Level-3-project forms the basis for a project (EpiPAIS) funded by the Federal Ministry of Research, Technology and Space (BMFTR). The aim of EpiPAIS – Epigenetic Patterns in the Pathogenesis of Long COVID – is to identify risk factors that increase the likelihood of developing PAIS following infection, and to identify epigenetic patterns that can be used to assess the extent to which these factors are associated with epigenetic changes. A case-control study is being conducted to characterise the epigenetic changes in blood immune cells in Long COVID and PAIS cases compared with matched controls – defined by questionnaire responses and building on the EU project ORCHESTRA.
