Dr. Ciaran Bannan:

For many years in the infectious diseases speciality, we have seen a lot of patients whose their quality of life has not returned to normal for quite a protracted period after certain infections.

Examples include after sepsis and ICU admission, influenza infection and various herpes viruses like Epstein-Barr. It has been frustrating for the patient and their lived experience. I may have mentioned in October 2022 that we now have a condition where a lot of the time we have a timeline from where the patient acquired infection. It is an opportunity to understand this poorly managed and researched condition better. In terms of data and research a lot of centres are now part of the national Irish Covid biobank. This is an opportunity to partake in research to gain a better understanding of the trajectory of patient recovery and the biology behind a lot of the symptoms patients are experiencing. From a research point of view, I encourage any patients to consider partaking in the national Irish Covid biobank.