Frontliners Share ‘Long COVID’ Experience, Urging Government to Take the Condition Seriously
Medics prepare to transport a man with possible Covid-19 symptoms to the hospital after checking his vital sign.
Healthcare workers who have had 'long COVID' experiences are urging the government to take the condition seriously as they contribute to the voices of thousands of people suffering from the lingering effects of COVID-19 several weeks and even months from experiencing the first symptoms.
Among those who shared their frequently devastating long COVID symptoms were Linn Jarte, an anesthetist from Swansea, and GP Amy Small. The two experienced almost incapacitating symptoms such as brain fog, constant fatigue, and memory loss.
In Jarte's case, the condition left her largely bed-bound after five months of initially experiencing COVID-19 symptoms. She added she was utterly unable to carry out her profession.
In a manifesto that the British Medical Journal or BMJ published earlier this week, a group of more than 30 doctors wrote about their fight against long COVID. They also called for more studies and clinical services to address the long COVID symptoms.
According to doctors' reports, it was a struggle to "navigate help" for these lasting symptoms. They also said there should be an appropriate diagnosis for long COVID to gain access to services.
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How These Healthcare Workers Suffer 'Long COVID'
University of Southampton public health associate professor Nisreen Alwan, who had first-hand experience of long COVID, shared her experience in a panel discussion about the condition.
She defined the occurrence as "not recovering for several weeks or months" after the onset of the suspected COVID-19 symptoms, whether an individual was tested or not.
Alwan noted profound fatigue was a typical indication in most people. However, the symptoms range may include cough, breathlessness, muscle and body pains, and heaviness or pressure on the skin, as well as similar rashes, palpitations, headache, diarrhea, and fever, among others.
Meanwhile, Caroline O'Brien, a public nurse featured in an Irish Times article, had a positive COVID-19 test in March. She described her recovery as uncertain and prolonged, adding, "You just don't know what's going to hit you next."
'Short COVID'
Epidemiology professor at King's College London, Tim Spector, led the COVID Symptoms Study published in July.
In this study, the authors identified six different COVID-19 types. As he spoke during the BMJ panel discussion, Spector said their collected data proposed that there were two types of COVID-19 most closely linked to longer-term symptoms, specifying a possible way of predicting what might occur.
If one got a persistent cough, hoarse voice, headache, shortness of breath, and diarrhea in the first week, that patient is twice or thrice more likely to develop longer-term symptoms.
The data also suggests that long COVID is about two times as common among women than in men and that the age of a person presenting with it was about four years older than those with what the study authors may have considered as "short COVID."
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Common 'Long COVID' Traits
Reports on this condition said fatigue is among the most typical trait in individuals with long COVID or symptoms experienced for more than three weeks.
According to Imperial College London cardiology professor Nick Peters, one more nearly common experience is the so-called "good days and bad days," with approximately 80 percent of people complaining about this.
The NHS website "Your COVID Recovery" section, which provides support to all patients recovering from COVID-19, has reportedly seen over 60,000 people visiting since its launch four weeks ago.
However, doctors believe there should be further specialized advice or service that would cater mainly to individuals suffering from long COVID symptoms.
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Sep 18, 2020 07:40 AM EDT
