• Nilihan E M Sanal-Hayes, Lawrence D Hayes, Marie Mclaughlin, Ethan C J Berry, and Nicholas F Sculthorpe.
• School of Health and Society, University of Salford, Salford, UK; Sport and Physical Activity Research Institute, School of Health and Life Sciences, University of the West of Scotland, Glasgow, UK. Electronic address: n.e.m.sanal-hayes@salford.ac.uk.
• Am. J. Med. 2024 Feb 24.

PurposeDexterity and bimanual coordination had not previously been compared between people with long COVID and people with myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS). Therefore, this study determined dexterity and bimanual coordination in people with long COVID (∼16-month illness duration; n = 21) and ME/CFS (∼16-year illness duration; n = 20), vs age-matched healthy controls (n = 20).MethodsDexterity and bimanual coordination was determined using the Purdue pegboard test.ResultsThe main findings of the present investigation were that people with ME/CFS and people with long COVID were generally comparable for Purdue pegboard tests (P > .556 and d < 0.36 for pairwise comparisons). It is worth noting however, that both these patient groups performed poorer in the Perdue pegboard test than healthy controls (P < .169 and d > 0.40 for pairwise comparisons).ConclusionsThese data suggest that both people with long COVID and people with ME/CFS have similarly impaired dexterity and bimanual coordination. Therefore, there is an urgent need for interventions to target dexterity and bimanual coordination in people with ME/CFS, and given the current pandemic, people with long COVID.Copyright © 2024 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

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