Two Years Later, We Still Don't Understand Long Covid. Why?
About this episode
Two and a half years into the pandemic, Klein interviews Dr. Lekshmi Santhosh, founder and medical director of the long-COVID clinic at UCSF Medical Center, about COVID's least understood legacy. They discuss why prevalence estimates vary so wildly — from 10 to 40 percent of infections, with a CDC study suggesting one in five adults — because the condition is a 'grab bag' of different symptom clusters and phenotypes, from cardiovascular and neurological symptoms to profound fatigue, with no single agreed-upon definition. The conversation covers the leading theories of what causes it (viral persistence, an autoimmune response, clotting problems), what vaccination does and doesn't prevent, and how little is proven about treatment, which remains largely symptom-directed. Santhosh emphasizes listening to patients, draws parallels to dismissed post-viral illnesses like ME/CFS, and describes the workforce and public-health stakes.