Bistagnino F, Pizzi D, Mantovani F, Antonino JR, Tovani-Palone MR. Long COVID and gut candidiasis: What is the existing relationship? World J Gastroenterol 2024; 30(37): 4104-4114 [DOI: 10.3748/wjg.v30.i37.4104]
Corresponding Author of This Article
Marcos Roberto Tovani-Palone, PhD, Adjunct Professor, Department of Research Analytics, Saveetha Dental College and Hospitals, Saveetha Institute of Medical and Technical Sciences, 162 Poonamallee High Road, Velappanchavadi, Chennai 600077, India. marcos_palone@hotmail.com
Research Domain of This Article
Gastroenterology & Hepatology
Article-Type of This Article
Review
Open-Access Policy of This Article
This article is an open-access article which was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/
Filippo Bistagnino, Davide Pizzi, Filippo Mantovani, Department of Medical Biotechnology and Translational Medicine, International Medical School, Università degli Studi di Milano, Milan 20054, Italy
Jacopo Rosso Antonino, Department of Biomedical Sciences for Health, Università degli Studi di Milano, Milan 20133, Italy
Marcos Roberto Tovani-Palone, Department of Research Analytics, Saveetha Dental College and Hospitals, Saveetha Institute of Medical and Technical Sciences, Chennai 600077, India
Author contributions: Bistagnino F, Pizzi D, Mantovani F, Antonino JR, and Tovani-Palone MR contributed to study conception and design, the original draft writing, and critical review; Bistagnino F and Tovani-Palone MR contributed to the manuscript editing and supervision. All authors approved the final content of the manuscript.
Conflict-of-interest statement: All the authors report no relevant conflicts of interest for this article. Tovani-Palone MR discontinued his affiliation with SRM College of Pharmacy, SRM Institute of Science and Technology, Kattankulathur, India.
Open-Access: This article is an open-access article that was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution NonCommercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: https://creativecommons.org/Licenses/by-nc/4.0/
Corresponding author: Marcos Roberto Tovani-Palone, PhD, Adjunct Professor, Department of Research Analytics, Saveetha Dental College and Hospitals, Saveetha Institute of Medical and Technical Sciences, 162 Poonamallee High Road, Velappanchavadi, Chennai 600077, India. marcos_palone@hotmail.com
Received: May 28, 2024 Revised: August 30, 2024 Accepted: September 13, 2024 Published online: October 7, 2024 Processing time: 121 Days and 0.3 Hours
Abstract
Since the beginning of the coronavirus disease (COVID) 2019 pandemic, thousands of articles on the topic have been published, and although there is a growing trend of research on another associated condition, long coronavirus disease, important points still remain to be clarified in this respect. Robust evidence has suggested a relevant link between new clinical discoveries and molecular mechanisms that could be associated with the manifestations of different signs and symptoms involving cases of long COVID. However, one of the existing gaps that requires further investigation concerns a possible relationship between gut candidiasis and long COVID. While recent studies also suggest an interplay between the occurrence of these two conditions, it is not yet fully clear how this may happen, as well as the specifics regarding the possible pathophysiological mechanisms involved. In this connection and with the advent of a potential strengthening of the body of evidence supporting the hypothesis of a link between gut candidiasis and long COVID, a better understanding of the clinical presentation, pathophysiology and clinical management of such a relationship should be essential and useful for both, additional advances towards more targeted research and appropriate case management. Knowing more about the signs, symptoms, and complications associated with cases of long COVID is essential in order to more effectively mitigate the related burden and provide a higher quality of care and life for the affected population. In light of this and the need for better outcomes, here we review and discuss the content on different aspects of long COVID, including its pathophysiology and the existing evidence of a potential relationship between such a condition and gut candidiasis, as well as suggest propositions for future related research.
Core Tip: More research is needed to address the specifics of a possible relationship between gut candidiasis and long coronavirus disease, in order to provide more robust knowledge on the topic, and consequently more appropriate management and treatment for affected patients. This, in turn, could lead to greater understanding and learning about the subject among all related healthcare professionals, with the potential to achieve better outcomes and improved quality of life and quality of care for the population.
