A Dutch study released on Saturday reported that one in eight adults with COVID-19 experiences long-lasting symptoms, or what is known as long-term COVID.
Long COVID refers to 20 or more symptoms that either persist, recur, or first appear at least one month after infection with the coronavirus. These can affect all parts of the body and may include fatigue, shortness of breath, brain fog and blood clots.
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The study, published in The Lancet, found that of 76,422 participants, “21.4% experienced at least one new or increased serious symptom 3 to 5 months after infection compared to before infection.” It was found that 8.7% of uninfected people experienced it”. A study surveyed during the same period found that 1 in 8 of her COVID-19 patients in the general population (12.7%) experienced long-term symptoms from her COVID-19. suggesting. “
In a statement released Thursday, Judith Rosmalen, lead author of the University of Groningen in the Netherlands, said a study called “Persistence of physical symptoms after COVID-19 in the Netherlands” was the most frequent in long-term COVID-19. said it was investigating symptoms associated with It includes breathing problems, fatigue, loss of taste and smell, both before a diagnosis of COVID-19 and in those who have not been diagnosed with the virus.
“This method allows us to consider existing symptoms and symptoms in uninfected people to improve the practical definition of long-lasting COVID-19 and to understand the likelihood that COVID-19 will occur in the general population.” We can provide reliable estimates,” Rosmalen said.
She said there was an “urgent need” for data that could inform the magnitude and extent of long-term symptoms some patients experience after being sick with COVID-19.
“However, most of the long-term COVID studies to date have examined the frequency of these symptoms in people who have not been diagnosed with COVID-19, or examined symptoms in individual patients prior to their diagnosis of COVID-19. We weren’t,” added Rosmalen.
Researchers identify key symptoms of long-lasting COVID-19
In the study, researchers collected data by asking participants to periodically complete a digital questionnaire about 23 symptoms commonly associated with long-term COVID, according to a press release.
The questionnaire was sent to the same individuals 24 times between March 2020 and August 2021.
“Most of the data was collected before the deployment of the COVID-19 vaccine in the Netherlands, so the number of vaccinated participants was too small to be analyzed in this study,” said the press release. increase.
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By looking at the symptoms of individuals before and after COVID-19 infection, the researchers say they were able to identify core symptoms of long-term COVID-19.
These main symptoms are chest pain, difficulty breathing, pain when breathing, muscle pain, loss of taste and smell, tingling in the extremities, lumps in the throat, heat or cold, heavy arms and legs, and general fatigue. is.
“The severity of these symptoms plateaued three months after infection and did not decline further,” the release said.
“Other symptoms that did not increase significantly three to five months after being diagnosed with COVID-19 included headaches, itchy eyes, dizziness, back pain and nausea,” he added.
Aranka Ballering, a PhD candidate and lead author of the study, said: “
Ballering said the study allowed her and her teammates to identify symptoms attributed to people experiencing mental rather than physical stress caused by the pandemic.
“The post-COVID-19 condition, also known as the long COVID, is an urgent issue with increasing human suffering. Understanding key symptoms and post-COVID-19 prevalence in the general population This is a major step forward for our ability to design studies that can ultimately inform the success of healthcare responses to long-term symptoms of COVID-19,” she said.
– use files from Reuters
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