66.How Close Are We to an Approved Long COVID Treatment? | RECOVER-TLC Research Update
Tue Feb 03 2026
RECOVER-TLC released a public update on four major long COVID treatment trials. Many patients are asking the same question: how close are we to an approved treatment?
In this episode, I break down how RECOVER-TLC chooses treatments to study, why the research process takes so long, and where each of the four current trials stands right now. I’ll also explain what this progress realistically means for people living with long COVID—without hype and without false hope.
This is for people who want a clear, honest explanation of long COVID research and timelines, and who want to understand how close—or far—we really are from approved treatments.
In this episode:
-Why approved long COVID treatments take so long
-How RECOVER-TLC selects and designs clinical trials
-Updates on baricitinib, low-dose naltrexone, GLP-1 agonists, and stellate ganglion block
-What this research means for patients right now
Chapters:
00:00 Understanding Long COVID and Research Delays
01:43 The Process of Choosing Targets
03:49 Designing Clinical Trials
07:32 Join the Community
08:25 Baricitinib
09:54 Low Dose Naltrexone (LDN)
11:08 Semaglutide: Exploring GLP-1 Treatments
14:08 Stellate Ganglion Block
16:52 Key Takeaways and Future Outlook
#longCOVID #COVID #fatigue #MECFS #POTS #medicine #science #RECOVERTLC #NIH #FDA #NIAID
Support the show
Subscribe for free written summaries of each episode, resources, and more. LongCovidMD.substack.com/subscribe
Support by donating at BuyMeACoffee
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RECOVER-TLC released a public update on four major long COVID treatment trials. Many patients are asking the same question: how close are we to an approved treatment? In this episode, I break down how RECOVER-TLC chooses treatments to study, why the research process takes so long, and where each of the four current trials stands right now. I’ll also explain what this progress realistically means for people living with long COVID—without hype and without false hope. This is for people who want a clear, honest explanation of long COVID research and timelines, and who want to understand how close—or far—we really are from approved treatments. In this episode: -Why approved long COVID treatments take so long -How RECOVER-TLC selects and designs clinical trials -Updates on baricitinib, low-dose naltrexone, GLP-1 agonists, and stellate ganglion block -What this research means for patients right now Chapters: 00:00 Understanding Long COVID and Research Delays 01:43 The Process of Choosing Targets 03:49 Designing Clinical Trials 07:32 Join the Community 08:25 Baricitinib 09:54 Low Dose Naltrexone (LDN) 11:08 Semaglutide: Exploring GLP-1 Treatments 14:08 Stellate Ganglion Block 16:52 Key Takeaways and Future Outlook #longCOVID #COVID #fatigue #MECFS #POTS #medicine #science #RECOVERTLC #NIH #FDA #NIAID Support the show Subscribe for free written summaries of each episode, resources, and more. LongCovidMD.substack.com/subscribe Support by donating at BuyMeACoffee