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The British variant of COVID-19 is already responsible for almost all cases of coronavirus infections in Poland. One of its most dangerous symptoms is quiet hypoxia. Too little oxygen can damage vital internal organs. Can such hypoxia be diagnosed early?
- During the current wave of coronavirus, dominated by the UK variant, patients rarely complain of loss of taste and smell
- Often, however, asymptomatic hypoxia appears
- Patients feel this hypoxia less, and we observe the destruction of lung tissue or inflammation in the lungs – says Prof. Miłosz Parczewski
- More stories about the coronavirus can be found on the Onet.p home pagel
The British variant of the coronavirus has almost completely dominated the current wave of the pandemic in Poland. – The scale of the virus in the British version is close to 95 percent, so we practically do not have a coronavirus in a non-British version anymore – said the spokesman of the Ministry of Health Wojciech Andrusiewicz a few days ago.
This strain shows slightly different symptoms than in the case of the basic variant, also known as Chinese.
– We observe a disturbance of smell and taste in patients suffering from COVID-19 very rarely – said Prof. Miłosz Parczewski, chief physician for COVID-19 in the provincial hospital in Szczecin.
Parczewski drew attention to another symptom, much more dangerous. – Some patients suffer from hypoxia, but asymptomatic – that is, they feel this hypoxia less, and we observe the destruction of the lung tissue or inflammation in the lungs – said a specialist in the field of infectious diseases.
- Hidden hypoxia dangerous for COVID-19 patients
– High-flow oxygen therapy works at full steam in our hospital, which means that people are constantly ill, with severe damage to the lung tissue. We see sick younger people with large changes in the lungs, with an occupancy of 20-40 percent. lung tissue – added Parczewski.
Silent hypoxia or hypoxia – what is it?
American scientists have already talked about the dangerous phenomenon of silent hypoxia (hypoxia) related to COVID-19. Pulmonologist Vadana A. Patel explained this symptom in an interview with Health magazine.
«Patients may not experience disturbing symptoms even though their lungs are under attack. Damage to the air sac caused by the virus can progress rapidly, causing dangerously low levels of oxygen, which can lead to further tissue damage in various organs including the lungs, heart, liver, kidneys and brain, »Dr Patel explained.
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Hidden hypoxia leads to hypoxia in internal organs. It can cause a stroke, heart attack, and has a negative effect on the mental condition.
The most common standard symptoms of hypoxia are: cough, faster heart beat, restlessness, dizziness and headache, disturbances in sensation and balance, confusion, seizures somnolence and shortness of breath.
As experts emphasize, healthy people tolerate low blood oxygen saturation rates for a long time. People struggling with heart, lung or kidney disease begin to experience breathing difficulties due to low oxygen saturation in the blood much earlier.
- Saturation – pulse oximetry, norms, indications
The appropriate level of saturation, or oxygen saturation, can be measured with a pulse oximeter. The correct level of saturation is 95%. up to 99%, in the elderly it is 94-98% A result close to 90 and lower should be consulted with a primary care physician.
For a long time, the British variant of the coronavirus was considered much more contagious (by several dozen percent) than the basic one, but for a long time there were no confirmed data on its increased mortality.
In March, however, an article appeared in the British Medical Journal, in which scientists announced that “the British variant of COVID-19 is about 64 percent. more lethal than the previous dominant variants ».
- UK Coronavirus Mutation Causes Severe COVID-19? There is new information
British scientists analyzed data on the number of deaths among the infected group, in which different variants of the virus were found. At 54 thousand 906 patients with COVID-19 caused by the British variant, 227 died. With the same number of infections with other variants of the coronavirus, 141 deaths have been recorded.
It was also found that a higher risk of death in patients infected with the British SARS-CoV-2 mutation appears about two weeks after the disease.
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