During the latest stage in the COVID-19 pandemic, more children are becoming seriously ill and some are experiencing symptoms lasting from one to several months. This condition is referred to by various names including long COVID, chronic COVID or scientifically, as post-acute sequalae of SARS-CoV-2 or PASC. Currently, most information about the long-term effects of COVID is based on the experience of adult patients. Now, a team of experts at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles has received $8.3 million from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to study long-term effects of COVID-19 in children and young adults in order to determine the most effective ways to treat the serious consequences of this condition.

Children’s Hospital Los Angeles is one of more than 30 institutions across the U.S. that will enroll tens of thousands of individuals in a national study called RECOVER (Researching COVID to Enhance Recovery) to understand the mystery surrounding the aftereffects of COVID-19 infection. The study will enroll adults, including pregnant women, and children. CHLA will be one of several pediatric hospitals aiming to enroll 20,000 children and young adults under the age of 25, including people with long-term effects of COVID, people who recovered completely from COVID, and people who never had COVID. Parents or caregivers will also be recruited whenever possible. RECOVER aims to develop a diverse population for a harmonized study of truly national scale that can be used by researchers to rapidly understand, treat, and prevent long-term effects of COVID-19.

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