The world’s attention has turned towards the Corona pandemic, its causes and ways to prevent it, but new calls are calling for more focus on the consequences of the coronavirus months following catching the infection.
A new, extensive study conducted on 100,000 participants provided new evidence that many of those infected with the emerging coronavirus did not fully recover for long months, at a time when the World Health Organization warned of the repercussions of the devastating effects of the long-term Covid, which causes long suffering “for tens of millions.” of people.”
The Director-General of the World Health Organization, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, said that the organization estimated that between ten to twenty percent of Covid survivors, they became suffering from medium and long-term symptoms such as fatigue, shortness of breath and cognitive impairment, noting that women were more likely to contract these symptoms. the condition.
The new study, which was published on Wednesday in the journal,Nature“Medical, indicated that many people with corona suffer from the effects of the disease even following many months have passed since catching the infection.
The study followed a Scottish population of 33,000 confirmed cases of corona, and another 73,000 who were never infected through questionnaires for six, 12 and 18 months, and linked them to hospitalization and death records.
Using NHS records, the researchers sent a text message to every adult who had a positive PCR test, as well as to a group of people who tested positive, inviting them to participate in a survey. Those who chose to participate answered online survey questions regarding their health before and following the injury.
Of the 31,486 asymptomatic infections, 1,856 (six percent) did not recover, while 13,350 (42 percent only partially) recovered.
“The study revealed the widespread and long-term impact of Covid on people’s lives,” said Jill Bell, professor of public health at the University of Glasgow, who led the research, noting that the repercussions go beyond health to quality of life, employment, education and the ability to take care of oneself.
Director of Rehabilitation Innovation for the Mount Sinai Health System in New York, David Putrino, considered that the study was well conducted at the population level, noting that it “shows that we should be very concerned regarding the current numbers of acute injuries,” warning: “We are in trouble.” According to the newspaper,Washington Post“.
According to the newspaper, between seven to 23 million Americans in the United States suffer from the long-term effects of infection with the emerging coronavirus, noting that one million of them can no longer work, according to government estimates.
She added that “these numbers are expected to rise with the transformation of Covid into an endemic disease.”
In the Scottish study, 24 symptoms that persisted long following infection included shortness of breath, heart palpitations and chest pain.
The positive aspect of the study was that it confirmed that vaccination was associated with a reduced risk of developing some symptoms.
The study found that the long-term risk of contracting COVID-19 was greater among women, the elderly, and those living in economically disadvantaged communities.
People who already had physical and mental health problems, such as respiratory illness and depression, were also more likely to have been infected with the virus for long periods.
For his part, the Director of the World Health Organization considered, in an interview with the newspaper, “The Guardian“While the pandemic has changed dramatically due to the introduction of many life-saving tools, and there is light at the end of the tunnel, the long-term impact of COVID-19 on all countries is very serious and needs immediate and sustainable action,” it said on Wednesday.
Ghebreyesus expressed his concerns “because in many countries people with corona are facing long and frustrating waiting periods” for support or guidance.
He called on countries to provide immediate access to antiviral vaccines to patients at risk of serious illness, invest in research, support patients’ physical and mental health, and ensure financial support, and equitable access to coronavirus tests and vaccines.
The Corona virus has infected more than 600 million people around the world, and led to the death of nearly 6.5 million people, according to the World Health Organization.