Antihistamines seem to help a subset of long COVID patients.
For those that may have been affected by Long Covid, a very small sample with some positive results.
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Over-the-counter antihistamines, typically taken for allergies, may help relieve the debilitating symptoms of long COVID in some people, a new case report suggests.
The report, published Feb. 7 in The Journal for Nurse Practitioners, included two middle-age women with long COVID, a condition also known by the medical term "post-acute sequelae of COVID-19" (PASC). After catching COVID-19 in 2020, the women developed a slew of symptoms that lingered for many months after their initial infections had cleared; these long-lasting symptoms included cognitive impairment, skin rashes and bruising, chest pain and profound fatigue.
At some point, many months after first developing these symptoms, both individuals took antihistamines for unrelated allergies. They found that, unexpectedly, their long COVID symptoms improved after they took the drugs. Both individuals now take a daily regimen of antihistamines and have said they've nearly regained their pre-PASC level of functioning, according to the case report.
These two anecdotal reports align with the results of a larger study, published Oct. 5, 2021 in The Journal of Investigative Medicine, which included 49 long COVID patients. Of these patients, 26 were given antihistamines. Of these, 19 reported complete or partial resolution of their symptoms. By comparison, only six of the other 23 patients, who were not given antihistamines, reported improved symptoms in the same time period.
These two reports add to a growing body of evidence that antihistamines may be helpful for treating long COVID, said Dr. Lawrence Afrin, senior consultant in hematology/oncology at the AIM Center for Personalized Medicine in Purchase, New York, who was not involved in either study.
