Long Covid much less likely after Omicron infection: Study.

ISLAMABAD -- The Omicron variant of SARS-CoV-2 is much less likely to lead to long Covid than the variant circulating at the start of the Covid-19 pandemic, new research shows.

The study found that healthcare workers infected with the original wild-type virus were up to 67 per cent more likely to report symptoms of long Covid than those who hadn't had Covid-19.

However, people who were first infected with the Omicron variant were no more likely to report long Covid symptoms than those who'd never had Covid-19.

The research also found that having Omicron after a wild-type infection does not carry a greater risk of long Covid or fatigue than having a wild-type infection alone.

Further, the analysis also revealed that re-infection -- an Omicron infection after a wild-type infection -- didn't carry a greater risk of long Covid or fatigue than a wild-type infection alone, Medical Daily reported .

Similarly, vaccination did not affect the risk of long Covid or fatigue in those who had Omicron after the wild-type virus.

While the reason remains unclear, the researchers speculated that "it's probably due to a combination of the Omicron variant being less likely to cause severe illness than the wild-type virus -- we know that long Covid is more common after severe illness -- and immunity acquired through previous exposure to the virus through, for example, a subclinical...