Shortly after the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic began, reports began to emerge of people suffering from lingering health problems caused by the coronavirus. The medical community has finally officially recognized long-term COVID-19, also known as “post-COVID-19,” and researchers have found that long-term COVID-19, also known as “post-COVID-19,” continues to persist even after people have recovered from COVID-19. I started trying to find out the cause of these long-term symptoms.
Long-term coronavirus clinics are now opening across the country. The federal government just awarded $45 million in grants. to nine of them to expand access to care. Why is improving access important? New research shows that an alarming number of people are infected with the coronavirus for long periods of time.
New data for 2022 released by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s National Center for Health Statistics shows: Almost 7% of Americans (18 million people) say they have previously been infected with the coronavirus for an extended period of time.Meanwhile, 3.4% (or 8.8 million people) say they currently have this condition.
of who Prolonged COVID-19 infection is defined as the continuation or onset of new symptoms three months after contracting COVID-19, and the symptoms persisting for at least two months without any other explanation. .
Researchers found that people aged 35 to 49 were most likely to have had coronavirus for a long time (8.9%) or are currently infected (4.7%). I discovered that. The data also shows that women are more likely than men to say they have had COVID-19 for a long time, with 4.4% of women saying they are currently suffering from COVID-19 for a long time. It was also shown that this rate was 2.3% for men, compared to 2.3% for men.
18 million is a large number, and doctors who have been treating long-term coronavirus patients say they are dealing with an influx of patients. “There is a huge unmet need in our country.” Dr. Andrew Shames“It’s been a long time coming,” the clinical co-director of the Ohio State Wexner Medical Center’s Post-COVID-19 Recovery Program told Yahoo Life. “In our clinics, people are waiting months to be seen, and a huge number of people are not being seen at all.”
While many people have been getting the message that there isn’t much that can be done for long-term COVID-19 patients, Shams said that’s no longer the case. Here, we will introduce the current situation of the prolonged novel coronavirus infection and what to do if you suspect that you have contracted the novel coronavirus.
What have we learned so far about the long COVID-19 pandemic?
At the beginning of the pandemic, there were many questions, including whether there really was a long COVID-19 period. But doctors who treat long-term coronavirus patients say a lot has changed. “We found out it existed.” Dr. Sabiha Hussain, medical director of the Post-COVID-19 Recovery Program at Rutgers University Robert Wood Johnson Medical School and Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital, told Yahoo Life. But, she says, “primary care physicians still need to be educated.” [and] There is a reluctance to provide care to these complex patients because there is no clear direction in treatment. ”
The new research focuses on identifying potential biomarkers for the disease so that doctors can more accurately diagnose the disease in patients in the future, Hussain said. A study published in Nature earlier this week profiled the immune systems of 273 people with and without long-term COVID-19 infection. ‘Significant differences’ discovered in bone marrow cells Lymphocytes (bone marrow tissue) and lymphocytes (a type of white blood cell) in people who have been infected with the novel coronavirus for a long time.
Another study published in The Lancet late last week analyzed MRIs of multiple organs in 531 people hospitalized with COVID-19 and those who did not have the virus. Researchers found that people with symptoms such as: Patients infected with the new coronavirus were more likely to develop abnormalities in their lungs, brain, and kidneys. than those who contracted the virus and were not hospitalized.
“Over the past year, we have improved our understanding of the long-term coronavirus pathophysiology, or the processes associated with the disease.” Dr. Nisha Viswanathan, director of UCLA’s long-running coronavirus program, tells Yahoo Life. “We are increasingly finding that ‘long-lasting coronavirus’ is an umbrella term for a variety of symptoms that can be caused by a variety of reasons. A better understanding will ultimately provide information that will inform next steps in testing and treatment.”
However, there is much that experts still don’t know about the long-lasting coronavirus. “The elements of long-term COVID-19 are very much being investigated.” Dr. Benjamin Abramoff, director of Penn Medicine’s Post-Corona Assessment and Recovery Clinic, tells Yahoo Life, including how the symptoms form and how they should be treated. “There’s a lot of interesting research being done in all of these areas, but I don’t think we have definitive answers yet,” he says.
What are the most common lingering symptoms?
The CDC has List of potential symptoms of long-term coronavirus infection, classified into general, respiratory, cardiac, neurological, gastrointestinal, and “other” manifestations of the disease. Shams said doctors who treat long-term coronavirus patients have noticed that these patients tend to develop “clusters of symptoms.”
“The most common symptom is fatigue,” he says. “I’m tired, and I’m tired.” tired. People describe a significant drop in energy levels compared to previous levels. The fatigue starts in the morning and lasts throughout the day.” Some people have a hard time working and feel “completely exhausted” by the end of the day, Chames said.
People who experience this “cluster” often feel foggy, have trouble finding words, can’t remember common procedures at work that they used to know, are absent-minded, and have difficulty learning new things. Shams says it often becomes difficult to follow recipes.
Other symptom groups may include chest pain and palpitations. Muscle and joint pain. Shams said there are also gastrointestinal issues such as difficulty swallowing and diarrhea. Some patients also experience menstrual irregularities, loss of taste or smell, and hair loss.
However, despite noticing a range of symptoms, “no two people who have had COVID-19 for a long time will ever have the same symptoms and may have a completely different experience.” Abramoff says.
Are certain people more likely to have a long-term infection with coronavirus than others?
This is still under investigation, but here’s the latest CDC data. The following people were most at risk Impact of the long-term onset of the new coronavirus infection:
“In general, the more severe the initial symptoms, the more likely they are to persist,” Abramoff says. He also pointed out that older age, not having been vaccinated, and having pre-existing conditions such as type 2 diabetes, anxiety, depression, asthma, COPD and autoimmune diseases are associated with a higher risk. ing.
The good news: In children, long-term COVID-19 infections appear to be very rare.
What treatment options are available and how effective are they?
This is still a work in progress. “There are no FDA-approved treatments for long-lasting coronavirus, and given the possible biological causes of symptoms and a variety of factors, treatments that may work for one patient may not work for another. There may not be any,” Viswanathan said. “At this time, we are focused on symptom management and ensuring we help patients adapt to their new chronic illness.”
However, doctors are exploring different treatments. “We’re participating in a trial looking at paxlobid for people with shortness of breath,” Hussein says. “We do occupational therapy for fatigue and have used the following medications: Modafinil“Drugs commonly used to treat excessive sleepiness, such as narcolepsy,” “Like IVIG, with little success,” or intravenous immunoglobulin, a treatment for antibody-deficient patients. She added, “We use cognitive therapy to relieve brain fog.”
Doctors emphasize the importance of seeking treatment at a clinic that specializes in this condition if you suspect you may have a long-term infection with COVID-19. “Many of our patients have seen doctors and been told that nothing is wrong or that the doctor can’t do anything,” Shams said. “There are a lot of doctors who don’t know how to deal with this problem.”