Researchers at the China-Japan Friendship Hospital examined the records of 1,192 people who were admitted to Jin Intan Hospital in Wuhan, China, and discharged from the hospital between January 7 and May 29, 2020.
Researchers are tested after six months, 12 months and two years asked for a subjective assessment of symptoms. Participants were also assessed for walking function tests using objective medical tests, including lung, CT, and six-minute tests.
In general, after two years, the health of the participants deteriorated. Symptoms of Covid-19 listed chronic illness, fatigue, sleep problems, and mental health problems. Patients with high levels of respiration at the time of hospitalization were more likely to have lung problems in the long run than others.
Participants with long-term symptoms sought medical attention more often than before the pandemic. They were told that exercise had become more difficult and that their quality of life had deteriorated. Most have returned to work, but it is unclear whether they worked at the level before they fell ill.
One of the authors of the study, Dr. Bin Kao of the China-Japan Friendship Hospital hopes the study will encourage doctors to ask more questions to patients with Kovid-19, even years after the initial infection.
“There is a need to provide ongoing support to a significant proportion of people with Covid-19 and to understand how vaccines, emerging treatments and options can affect long-term health,” Kao said in a press release.
There are some limitations to the study. The researchers did not compare the results with those who were hospitalized for non-Covid reasons to see if they had more symptoms. They compared the hospitalized group to people in society who had never received Covid-19; A year later, he also had health problems with the group, but this was only about half of the group in the hospitalized group.
Another limitation is that the study included one hospital, so the results may not be universal for all Covid-19 patients hospitalized. Prior to the pandemic, patients were usually hospitalized longer than they are now, and this can affect how long someone’s symptoms last. Because the study was conducted at the beginning of the pandemic, it is unclear whether people with subsequent coronavirus strains or those who have been vaccinated will have similar results.
“I know I can safely recommend patients with Covid for a long time, this is a vaccine,” said Sangavi, who did not participate in the study. “When we compare unvaccinated patients with vaccinated patients and see cases of long-term Covid symptoms, the symptoms of vaccinated patients are less severe and long-term Covid is less common.”
“At the moment, these patients sometimes seem to think later,” Sangavi said.
“Research shows how many people need help. I don’t know if you’ve tried to get into primary care, but in many places it can take weeks or even months. It’s simple. Get a health check – forget the long Covid.”
According to Sangavi, more doctors need to be trained on how to help people with chronic Covid disease. “Our health care system is not ready for the impact that patients will have on this situation.”
Erlandson said that because many people wanted to know more about Covid, his colleagues weren’t even forced to advertise the trial; There is a waiting list to log in.
The new study is consistent with what employees see in those long-distance clinics.
“It’s like saying that patients in the United States have been experiencing symptoms for two years, especially in the first wave of pandemic patients. We hear this as an anecdote, so it’s always good. Look at what’s published,” said Erlandson, who did not participate in the study. Patients in his clinic have similar symptoms, often with drowsiness and fatigue.
He stressed that people do not need to be hospitalized for Covid-19, and hopes that future research will show how long people who are not hospitalized will experience symptoms.
Erlanson also noted that some of the study participants improved after 12 months, but worsened again after two years.
“I think it’s interesting to see that long-term research isn’t this progressive improvement. People are changing in terms of their improvement,” he said.
Erlanson said participants wondered if Covid-19 had improved after two years or if Covid-19 had become chronic. Doctors can treat certain symptoms, but there is no specific treatment for long-lasting Covid.
“If they don’t have any treatment, I’m concerned that it will have a long-term impact on disability and the functioning of some patients,” he said.
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