MCAS and Severe Covid/Long Covid

[MaudeAnni]

I have MCAS and have read about severe Covid and Long Covid potentially being caused/or made worse by Mast Cells over-reacting. Just wondered if anyone has any more information about that? I thought my GP would recommend early vaccination but they say there is no link, and I have to wait for my age group. Has anyone else any experience to share? Thank you

[Jess-UKMasto Partner]

Hi Maude, while there are groups of folks with Long COVID who are finding that their mast cells seem to be misbehaving, and some who are finding that the medications used for MCAS help them feel better, I don't know yet of any research papers yet that back this up with the kind of data your doctor might want. I do see that there are a few published articles positing a connection, though as far as I can tell those so far are based on supposition and not data, which doesn't prove the connection, just suggests it's worth exploring. From what I have seen in the various groups of patients in forums I follow (mostly on Facebook) the experience with COVID is mixed, with some finding that in the short term their mast cells calm down, but also some finding that their mast cells remain unhappy for awhile. I would keep an eye on the Long COVID groups out in the universe (more every day) to keep up with the literature. And feed any papers that look plausible to your GP!

[MaudeAnni in reply to Jess-UKMasto]

Thank you Jess.... I'm interesting in exploring more about how all viruses impact on mast cells.... will keep looking for articles online,