12 symptoms of “COVID long tail”. Check if you have them and what to do next

Months of the pandemic exposed an unexpected threat. It can affect anyone who has had COVID-19, also asymptomatically. It can “make you disabled for months, if not years”, warned an emergency medicine expert from the United States in the fall. Meet the 12 symptoms of “COVID long tail”. If you observe them at home, do not delay the visit to the doctor.

1. “COVID long tail” (“long COVID”, long-COVID) denotes the long-term effects of COVID-19 in adults
2. CDC Cautions That ‘COVID Long Tail’ can happen to anyone who has had COVID-19, regardless of the severity of the disease
3. 12 symptoms that may indicate long-COVID include: “brain fog”, fatigue, sleep disorders, mental problems
4. If you think you may have “COVID long tail” consult your physician
5. More information can be found on the Onet homepage.

«Long tail COVID»: what is it and how common is it?

Already last year, scientists began to see another COVID-19 problem that will have to be tackled. There were more people who defeated the coronavirus, but did not recover, struggling for months with complications that prevented them from living normally. Many of them are young people who had no previous health problems. – You can’t be safe. SARS-CoV-2 can make you disabled for months, if not years, warned emergency medicine specialist Ken Scheppke.

Persistent complications after COVID-19 are commonly referred to as “long COVID”, long-COVID-19 or “long tail COVID”. As explained by the American government agency CDC (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention – Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) – a leading global organization fighting epidemics – “COVID long tail” is “a wide range of new, recurring or ongoing health problems that people may encounter more than four weeks after first contracting SARS-CoV-2”. The CDC cautions that “long tail COVID” can happen to anyone who has had COVID-19, “even if the disease was mild or asymptomatic.”

How many people experience “COVID long tail”? Estimates vary. A large UK study found it will develop in about one in 10 people. Meanwhile, the University of Washington estimates the figure is closer to one in three COVID-19 patients. Moreover, in an interview with the US Business Insider, pulmonologist at Baylor College of Medicine Fidaa Shaib warns that “people can suffer from long-term COVID and not know it because they don’t know how to recognize it.” The enormous variety of symptoms of “COVID long tail” does not help. Unfortunately, this also means that its effects may extend to “most, if not all, body systems, including the heart, lungs, kidneys, skin, brain” (after CDC).

What symptoms could indicate “COVID long tail”? There are no formal diagnostic guidelines yet to support it. Here are 12 common signs of “long COVID” – if you have any of them, consult your doctor.

«COVID long tail». Symptoms: brain fog

One of the symptoms that can go on for months after COVID-19 is beaten is a condition called “brain fog”. It is a non-medical term used to describe symptoms such as confusion, forgetfulness, inability to focus, and communication problems.

An analysis of 51 large studies shows that in the six months following coronavirus infection, up to one in five people with “long tail COVID” experiences “brain fog”, regardless of whether patients were hospitalized or not. These studies have not yet been verified.

1. Cerebral fog after COVID-19 – what is it and how to deal with it? [WE EXPLAIN]

«COVID long tail». Symptoms: fatigue

Six out of 19 patients reported fatigue and muscle weakness six months later, according to a Chinese study among people hospitalized for COVID-10.

Both “brain fog” and fatigue are also features of Chronic Fatigue Syndrome.

«COVID long tail». Symptoms: insomnia

People who have had COVID-19 may struggle with intermittent, ineffective sleep or insomnia. An analysis of these 51 large studies shows that one in five patients with long COVID-19 reported problems of this type within six months after becoming ill.

«COVID long tail». Symptoms: shortness of breath and persistent cough

Symptoms such as shortness of breath and persistent cough are common among people who have been infected with COVID-19 within a month to six months. This was shown by studies conducted on over 73 thousand. people.

«COVID long tail». Symptoms: problems with the circulatory system

In the cardiovascular system, the coronavirus can lead to complications such as: heart attack, arrhythmias, palpitations. People who were infected with SARS-CoV-2 within six months were at an increased risk of developing heart failure, atherosclerosis, and blood clots.

Myocarditis has also been seen in people with COVID long tail. Importantly, previous studies suggest that its occurrence did not depend on the patient’s previous health problems or the severity and course of his disease.

«COVID long tail». Symptoms: neurological symptoms, depression

A few months ago, prof. Paul Harrison from the University of Oxford, pointed out that people who have had coronavirus infection are at greater risk of mental disorders. The expert emphasized that this also applied to those patients who did not require hospitalization.

A large study cited by the American Business Insider suggests that more than a third of people who have contracted COVID-19 infection experience neurological symptoms or mental health problems within six months of getting sick. The most common ones are anxiety disorders and mood disorders.

The threats also include post-traumatic stress disorder and depression. Some may suffer from delirium, a confused state in which the person feels disconnected from reality, as if they are dreaming.

Mental disorders that occur in patients after COVID-19 may be associated with the strong experience it causes, as well as with the course of this disease.

«COVID long tail». Symptoms: loss of smell

Research conducted in the USA among people who lost their sense of smell after undergoing COVID-19, about one-third did not regain their sense of smell for at least two months. However, these analyzes included a small number of people.

«COVID long tail». Gastrointestinal symptoms (loss of appetite, diarrhea)

Over 40 percent Patients hospitalized for COVID-19 reported gut-related problems within three months of leaving the hospital, suggests a small study from China.

They were carried out among 117 patients who were admitted to 16 hospitals in Hubei and Guangdong provinces between January 7 and March 2020, 19 due to COVID-12. Of this group, 52 people (44%) reported gastrointestinal symptoms: 51 patients experienced them three months after discharge from the hospital, one resolved within these 90 days.

The most common complaints of convalescents were loss of appetite, nausea, gastro-intestinal reflux, and diarrhea. Flatulence, belching, vomiting, abdominal pain and bloody stools appeared less frequently.

«COVID long tail». Symptoms: rashes and hair loss

Analyzes conducted among American convalescents showed that people who had been infected with the coronavirus within six months of contracting the disease reported skin rashes.

Patients also sometimes complained about increased hair loss. A study from China documented excessive hair loss in 22 percent of hospitalized patients, within six months of discharge from the hospital. Earlier studies indicated that the so-called telogen effluvium. This is the state where most of the hair is in its resting phase (the so-called telogen phase). This situation may be influenced, among others, by prolonged stress.

«COVID long tail». Symptoms: chest tightness, pain in joints and muscles

According to a study on long-term COVID-19 symptoms published in December, nine out of 10 complained of chest tightness, muscle aches and joint pain a month after infection. Some of them lasted for at least seven months. However, this data has not yet been verified.

«COVID long tail». Symptoms: diabetes

American studies of patients with complications after the coronavirus show that the likelihood of developing diabetes within six months of becoming ill is 39 percent. bigger.

«COVID long tail». Symptoms: kidney disease

People with COVID-19 were also more likely to develop kidney problems. However, it is believed that patients with COVID-19 rarely experience life-threatening severe kidney damage and chronic kidney failure.

«Long tail COVID» – why does it appear and what may be the consequences?

These 12 symptoms do not exhaust the list of possible symptoms of “long COVID” reported by patients. However, not all of them are thoroughly tested, not all are confirmed. However, it is worth mentioning that some women have reported irregular periods and more severe PMS after suffering from SARS-CoV-2 infection.. Other patients complained, for example, of persistent ringing or severe tinnitus. Moreover, after vaccination against COVID-19, some people with “COVID long tail” reported improvements in their health and relief of symptoms, but others reported worsening of these symptoms.

1. Another symptom of “COVID-19 long tail”. Women observe disturbing changes

As you can see, “COVID long tail” has many unknowns. It remains a mystery who is most at risk of it and why, what the short- and long-term health effects may be, whether they may lead to chronic conditions or will eventually disappear. At present, it is also difficult to determine how big a social problem the postcovid syndrome will turn out to be in the future. However, experts have no doubts about one thing: the number of patients who will require multidisciplinary medical and rehabilitation care due to long-COVID-19 will increase.

Research into complications from coronavirus infection is ongoing, and the CDC reminds that the best way to avoid the long-term effects of COVID-19 is to prevent coronavirus infection.

You may be interested in:

1. Long covid symptoms go away after vaccine?
2. Long COVID-19. Physical activity helps to get rid of ailments
3. Post-COVID-19 rehabilitation. Check what to do after the disease has passed

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