A British historian, an Italian archaeologist and an American teacher all have something in common.
一位英国历史学家、一位意大利考古学家和一位美国教师都有一些共同点。
 
The three women are credited with describing and naming the condition known as long COVID in early 2020.
这三位女性因描述和命名 2020 年初被称为长期 COVID 的病症而受到赞誉。
 
Almost three years into the pandemic, scientists are still trying to figure out why some people get long COVID and why a small percentage — including the three women — have lasting symptoms.
大流行已近三年，科学家们仍在试图弄清楚为什么有些人会长期感染 COVID，以及为什么一小部分人（包括三名女性）会出现持续的症状。
 
Background
背景
 
Rachel Pope, the historian, is from the British city of Liverpool. She posted on Twitter about her symptoms in late March 2020, after a coronavirus infection. A few months later, in Italy, Elisa Perego tweeted about her sickness also and used the term "long COVID" in the post. And, that same year, Amy Watson of Portland, Oregon, founded a Facebook support group for people, like her, who were suffering from long COVID. She identified them as "long haulers," a term used in the trucking industry. The name stuck.
历史学家雷切尔·波普 (Rachel Pope) 来自英国的利物浦市。2020 年 3 月下旬，她在感染冠状病毒后在 Twitter 上发布了自己的症状。几个月后，在意大利，Elisa Perego 也在推特上发布了她的病，并在帖子中使用了“long COVID”一词。同年，俄勒冈州波特兰市的艾米·沃森 (Amy Watson) 成立了一个 Facebook 支持小组，为像她这样长期患有新冠病毒的人提供支持。她将他们称为“长途运输车”，这是卡车运输行业使用的一个术语。这个名字卡住了。
 
Millions of people worldwide report having long COVID. The symptoms include lung damage, difficulty thinking and remembering, extreme tiredness, and other problems. Evidence suggests most people get better within a year. But recent data show that long COVID has played a part in more than 3,500 U.S. deaths.
全世界有数百万人报告患有长期 COVID。症状包括肺损伤、思维和记忆困难、极度疲倦和其他问题。有证据表明大多数人会在一年内好转。但最近的数据显示，长期 COVID 已导致 3500 多例美国死亡。
 
 
Women more likely to suffer from long COVID
女性更容易患上长期 COVID
 
Many studies suggest that women are more likely than men to develop long COVID.
许多研究表明，女性比男性更容易患上长期 COVID。
 
There could be biological reasons.
可能有生物学原因。
 
Women's immune systems generally have stronger reactions to viruses, bacteria, and other germs, said Sabra Klein, an immune system expert at Johns Hopkins University.
约翰霍普金斯大学免疫系统专家 Sabra Klein 说，女性的免疫系统通常对病毒、细菌和其他病菌有更强的反应。
 
Women are also much more likely than men to have autoimmune diseases, where the body mistakenly attacks its own healthy tissue. Some scientists believe long COVID can result from an autoimmune response caused by the virus.
女性也比男性更容易患自身免疫性疾病，身体会错误地攻击自身的健康组织。一些科学家认为，长期 COVID 可能是由病毒引起的自身免疫反应引起的。
 
Women's bodies are also more likely to have more fat tissue. New research suggests the coronavirus may hide in fat after infection. Scientists also are studying whether women's changing hormone levels may increase the risks.
女性的身体也更有可能拥有更多的脂肪组织。新的研究表明，冠状病毒可能在感染后隐藏在脂肪中。科学家们还在研究女性荷尔蒙水平的变化是否会增加患病风险。
 
Yet there are other possible issues at work. Women are more likely than men to seek health care, Klein said. She added that often women are more sensitive to changes in their bodies.
然而，还有其他可能的问题在起作用。克莱因说，女性比男性更有可能寻求医疗保健。她补充说，女性通常对自己身体的变化更敏感。
 
"I don't think we should ignore that," she said, adding that biology and behavior are probably both at play.
“我认为我们不应该忽视这一点，”她说，并补充说生物学和行为可能都在起作用。
 
 
Other viruses
其他病毒
 
Several studies suggest the Epstein-Barr virus could play a part in some cases of long COVID.
几项研究表明，爱泼斯坦-巴尔病毒可能在某些长 COVID 病例中发挥作用。
 
Epstein-Barr is a very common virus. It has infected an estimated 90 percent of the U.S. population. The virus' effects can differ greatly among those infected. Some patients might develop the disease mononucleosis, for example. Others, however, may not be sickened at all by an Epstein-Barr infection.
Epstein-Barr 是一种非常常见的病毒。它已经感染了大约 90% 的美国人口。病毒的影响在感染者之间可能有很大差异。例如，一些患者可能会患上单核细胞增多症。然而，其他人可能根本不会因 Epstein-Barr 感染而生病。
 
Inflammation caused by coronavirus infection can activate or reactivate some viruses in the body, said Dr. Timothy Henrich. He is an expert with the University of California, San Francisco.
Timothy Henrich 博士说，冠状病毒感染引起的炎症可以激活或重新激活体内的一些病毒。他是加州大学旧金山分校的专家。
 
Henrich is among researchers who have found immune markers pointing to Epstein-Barr reactivation in the blood of long COVID patients.
Henrich 是发现免疫标记物的研究人员之一，这些标记物指向长期 COVID 患者血液中的 Epstein-Barr 再激活。
 
Not all long COVID patients have these markers. But it's possible that Epstein-Barr is causing symptoms in those who do, although scientists say more study is needed.
并非所有长 COVID 患者都有这些标记。但 Epstein-Barr 可能会导致那些有症状的人出现症状，尽管科学家表示还需要进行更多研究。
 
Obesity
肥胖
 
Obesity is a risk factor for severe COVID-19 infections and scientists are trying to understand why.
肥胖是严重 COVID-19 感染的一个危险因素，科学家们正试图了解其中的原因。
 
Stanford University researchers are among those who have found evidence that the coronavirus can infect fat cells. In a recent study, they found the virus and signs of inflammation in fat tissue taken from people who had died from COVID-19.
斯坦福大学的研究人员等发现了冠状病毒可以感染脂肪细胞的证据。在最近的一项研究中，他们在从死于 COVID-19 的人身上提取的脂肪组织中发现了病毒和炎症迹象。
 
Lab tests showed that the virus can reproduce in fat tissue. That raises the possibility that fat tissue could serve as a storage area, possibly fueling long COVID.
实验室测试表明，该病毒可以在脂肪组织中繁殖。这增加了脂肪组织可以作为储存区的可能性，可能会助长长期的 COVID。
 
Hope and concerns
希望与担忧
 
Dr. Lawrence Purpura is an infectious disease expert at Columbia University in New York. He said about patients with long COVID, "The majority of patients will eventually recover...It's important for people to know that."
Lawrence Purpura 博士是纽约哥伦比亚大学的传染病专家。他谈到长 COVID 患者时说，“大多数患者最终都会康复……让人们知道这一点很重要。”
 
Still, the women who helped the world recognize the condition of long COVID remain concerned about recovery.
尽管如此，帮助世界认识到长期 COVID 状况的女性仍然对康复感到担忧。
 
Perego developed heart, lung and other problems and remains seriously sick.
佩雷戈患上了心脏、肺部和其他疾病，并且一直病得很重。
 
 
The 44-year-old says she knows that scientists have learned a lot in a short time. But, "there is a gap," she said, between long COVID research and medical care.
这位 44 岁的女士说，她知道科学家们在短时间内学到了很多东西。但是，她说，在长期的 COVID 研究和医疗保健之间“存在差距”。
 
Watson, who is 59, says she has "never had any kind of recovery." She experiences severe headaches, digestive trouble and nerve and foot problems. Recently she developed anemia.
59 岁的沃森说，她“从未有过任何康复”。她经历了严重的头痛、消化问题以及神经和足部问题。最近她患上了贫血。
 
She wishes the medical community had a more organized process for treating long COVID. Doctors say not knowing the underlying cause or causes makes that difficult.
她希望医学界有一个更有条理的过程来治疗长期 COVID。医生说，不知道根本原因或原因使得这很困难。
 
"I just want my life back," Watson said, "and it's not looking like that's all that possible."
“我只想重获新生，”沃森说，“但看起来这一切都不可能。”