Effect of Metformin in Reducing Fatigue in Long COVID in Adolescents
Status:
Not yet recruiting
Trial end date:
2024-12-01
Target enrollment:
Participant gender:
Summary
Long Covid is a multisystem condition comprising often severe symptoms that follow a severe
acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection. Long COVID often manifests
as fatigue and neurocognitive impairment (also referred to as 'brain fog'). Based on two
systematic reviews of Covid-19 cases in neonates, children and adolescents under 19 years of
age, fatigue caused by Long Covid can persist for years and can lead to work disability and
labour shortages, posing a public health emergency with lasting health, mental, and economic
impacts. To date, no treatment has shown to be broadly effective for the treatment of Long
Covid. An experimental study has demonstrated that metformin, a common diabetes drug, might
reduce the incidence of long COVID if given during the acute phase of COVID-19. The study,
however, did not look at whether metformin would be effective as a treatment for those who
already have long COVID. It also did not report the results by age groups, so it is not clear
if the effect of metformin differs for people younger than 35 years of age. Therefore, a
pilot, adaptive randomized controlled trial, which will evaluate the feasibility of
conducting a large platform trial and will also evaluate the efficacy and safety of using
metformin (versus placebo, a look-alike substance with no active ingredient) in managing
fatigue in long COVID adolescent patients with persistent (long term) features of fatigue
(chronic fatigue syndrome) has been proposed.