Project 467059

Since the declaration of the COVID-19 pandemic by the World Health Organization, over 259 million people have tested positive for COVID-19. A notable percentage of individuals who were previously infected with COVID-19 continue to experience persisting and functionally impairing symptoms, which have collectively been identified as ;post COVID-19 condition. Anhedonia (inability to experience pleasure) and impaired reward function (inability to experience reward) are common symptoms of post COVID-19 condition, which also have a negative impact on quality of life.Currently, no treatment options exist to treat the foregoing symptoms of post COVID-19 condition. As such, my project aims to evaluate the effectiveness of vortioxetine, a Health Canada-approved antidepressant, in treating anhedonia and reward function among persons with post COVID-19 condition. In this 8-week randomized, double-blinded, placebo-controlled clinical trial, participants will receive 10-20mg of the study medication (i.e., placebo or vortioxetine). Clinical assessments and questionnaires will be administered, and changes in those outcomes will be analyzed. Results from this study may increase treatment options for post COVID-19, as well as further our knowledge about COVID-19 and its long-term impacts on human health and health systems.