Long Covid and periods: Women living with long Covid are more likely to experience longer, heavier menstrual bleeding, and their symptoms often worsen around their period, according to a UK study that surveyed more than 12,000 respondents.
The work, published in Nature Communications, suggests a two-way interaction: long Covid appears to disrupt menstrual patterns, while hormonal shifts across the cycle seem to intensify long-Covid symptoms.
Also Read | Severe period pain in teens increases chances of long-term chronic pain: Study
Researchers analysed responses from 12,187 women collected between March and May 2021. Over 1,000 reported ongoing symptoms consistent with long Covid, more than 1,700 had recovered from infection, and about 9,400 said they had never tested positive.
Women with long Covid were more likely to report heavier, longer periods and bleeding between cycles. In a follow-up of 54 participants, symptom severity rose in the two days before menstruation and during the first days of bleeding.
Preliminary laboratory work in a subset of 10 women found signs of excessive inflammation in the uterine lining and higher-than-usual levels of the hormone dihydrotestosterone, factors that could contribute to heavier bleeding. Importantly, the researchers found no evidence that long Covid impairs ovarian function.
The findings highlight iron deficiency, a prevalent issue among women of reproductive age that heavy periods can exacerbate. Iron deficiency can cause fatigue, breathlessness and dizziness, symptoms that overlap with long Covid.
“If you have long Covid on top of iron deficiency, it’s unsurprising that these women are really debilitated,” said Dr Jacqueline Maybin, a reader and honorary consultant gynaecologist at the University of Edinburgh, who led the study. She said the goal now is to develop targeted treatments for menstrual disturbance in long Covid, and potentially female-specific therapies for the condition itself.
