Amygdala and Insula Retraining Tied to Reduction in Fatigue With Long COVID

MONDAY, July 24, 2023 (HealthDay News) -- Amygdala and insula retraining (AIR), a neuroplasticity program, may be a viable means of reducing fatigue and increasing energy among patients with long COVID, according to a study published online July 17 in the Evidence-Based Complementary and Alternative Medicine Journal.

Loren L. Toussaint, Ph.D., from Luther College in Decorah, Iowa, and Alexandra J. Bratty, M.B.A., Ph.D., from AB Research Consulting in Las Vegas, randomly assigned 100 participants (aged 21 to 65 years) with postviral symptoms at least three months after an acute COVID-19 infection to AIR or control.

The researchers found a significant decrease in participants' fatigue and a significant increase in their energy after the three-month AIR intervention. Fatigue reduction was nearly four times higher in the AIR group versus the control group, while the absolute reduction in mean scores for the AIR group was more than double that of the control group. Similarly, the effect size in energy enhancement among AIR participants was twice that of the control group, and the absolute increase in energy mean scores for the AIR group was almost double that of the control group.

"These findings are both timely and pertinent, as so little is known about how to treat long COVID and so many patients suffer from it after the acute infection of COVID-19," the authors write.

Bratty is the CEO of AB Research Consulting, which provides consulting services to The Gupta Program, the commercial version of the AIR intervention; Bratty's company was compensated for this work by independent donors.

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