‘Long covid’ – The under-the-radar coronavirus cases exhausting thousands

We’re swiftly learning the symptoms of Covid-19 may last longer than previously thought. One in 10 people are reporting a longer tail of symptoms, which exceeds the suggested two-week recovery time.

It’s thought around 30,000 people in the UK could be impacted by a prolonged version of the illness – what some are calling ‘long covid’. These people are months into their recovery from the virus and still fighting a range of persistent symptoms. In some cases, the symptoms disappear for a while before coming back. In others, they’re gradually improving over time.

Research from the Covid-19 Symptom Study in the UK, led by Professor Tim Spector of King’s College London, shows after three weeks of first reporting symptoms, a group of people continue to experience fatigue, headaches, coughs, loss of smell, sore throats, delirium and chest pain.

People with mild cases of the disease are more likely to have a wide range of symptoms that come and go over an extended period, Prof Spector found. And these people are often flying under the radar because they’re not in hospital.

Those who believe they’ve had ‘long covid’ are now calling on the government to recognise their plight, invest in research and put support in place.

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Source: Huffpost, 2 July 2020