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Showing results for tags 'Long Covid'.
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Content Article
Engaging Long COVID patients (30 November 2020)
Patient Safety Learning posted an article in Blogs
Patient Safety Learning looks at some of the concerns facing people living with Long COVID in this blog for the Patient Information Forum. -
Content ArticleIn response to the rapid spread of COVID-19, this paper from Tamar Wildwing and Nicole Holt provides health professionals with better accessibility to available evidence, summarising findings from a systematic overview of systematic reviews of the neurological symptoms seen in patients with COVID-19. Implications of so-called Long Covid on neurological services and primary care and similarities with other neurological disorders are discussed. Note: This article is a preprint and has not yet been peer-reviewed.
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News Article
Major concerns over funding and staffing of new ‘long covid’ clinics
Patient Safety Learning posted a news article in News
There are serious concerns over the funding and staffing numbers available for new ‘long-covid’ clinics, while patient groups ‘remain in the dark’ over their locations. Last month, NHS England announced there would be 40 clinics around the country, to start opening at the end of November, with £10m of funding to cover set-up and operational costs until March 2021. But several speakers at HSJ’s inaugural virtual respiratory forum last week said there were still uncertainties and concerns about the capacity to provide the clinics. Dr Jon Bennet, a respiratory consultant and chair of the British Thoracic Society, said staffing the respiratory rehabilitation services within the clinics would be challenging, as “there isn’t at the moment sufficient capacity”. Read full story (paywalled) Source: HSJ, 29 November 2020 -
Event
Long COVID Joint Research Forum
Patient Safety Learning posted an event in Community Calendar
untilCurrently very little is known about the clinical, biological, psychological and socio-environmental impact of COVID-19. While most people may have uncomplicated recoveries, some experience prolonged or new symptoms and complications. The wide range of Long Covid symptoms documented indicates that multiple body systems are involved. Some of the more commonly reported symptoms include fatigue, breathing difficulties, joint pain, chest pain, as well as muscle weakness and neurological symptoms. These are common among both people who were hospitalised in the early phase of COVID-19 and those who were not. Systematic reviews show that people worldwide are experiencing prolonged symptoms of COVID-19. There are implications at an individual level for people’s quality of life and their ability to work, as well as at a socioeconomic level due to the risk of widening health inequalities. As well as breadth of the physical, psychological and social complications, there is a need to understand the causes (aetiology) of the symptoms and complications experienced. It is also vital to be able to identify people at higher risk of Long Covid, as well as interventions that might reduce that risk, and support rehabilitation and recovery. There is an urgent need for robust scientific studies into the long-term impact of COVID-19 in both adults and children, and for healthcare providers to be informed to support prevention, assessment, rehabilitation and interventions to improve recovery and patient outcomes. With this need in mind, ISARIC and GloPID-R are organising the Long Covid Forum on December 9 and 10, 2020 in collaboration with the Long Covid Support. The objectives of the forum will be: to gain a better understanding of Long Covid; the science and the personal impact to define research gaps for funders and researchers to take forward. Register -
EventThe Chronic Long Covid19 support group presents this international conference for patients. Presenters: Dr David Tuller, Global Public Health Expert, University of Berkeley, California: graded exercise therapy/cognitive behavior therapy treatment approach to ME and why it should not be used for long-covid patients. Nikita Alexandrov biochemist/biohacker, University of Alabama, USA: COVID-19 and the elephants in the room – big misconceptions and important out of the box observations made so far. Secondary infections: why there is no real cytokine storm concern and the issue of mast cell activation. Book your place
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Content ArticleAs research into the long-term impact of COVID-19 continues, this guide from the Royal College of Nursing explores the symptoms and how clinicians can support their patients’ recovery. Topics covered: Post-viral fatigue Fluctuating multi-system symptoms Lasting organ damage Post-intensive care syndrome Mental health Learning and training
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Content ArticleStu King is is joined by Dr Nisreen Alwan and Prof Susan Michie. Nisreen is Associate Professor in Public Health, University of Southampton. Susan is Director, UCL Centre for Behaviour Change & a committee member of Independent Sage. In this podcast, Nisreen shares her experience of long COVID, what it means and its effects. They look at how both those with long COVID and healthcare workers are affected - how the range of symptoms can be difficult to diagnose, causing anxiety. Plus, the challenge for patients of managing with such unpredictability. Nisreen and Susan discuss the evidence of who is at risk, including young people. And how the public messaging around COVID could do more to alert this group of the risks to their health & wellbeing. Nisreen shares the support available through healthcare and peer support. And Susan shares how indieSAGE will be discussing it in order to advise the government.
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Content ArticleBack in April the ME Association (MEA) became aware of an increasing number of people who had been ill with COVID-19 and were not improving, even after several weeks. Almost all had been self-managed at home with an illness that mostly varied from mild to moderate in severity, but not requiring hospital admission. Most had debilitating fatigue, sometimes with continuing COVID-19 symptoms involving the lungs or heart in particular. Some had symptoms that are more consistent with the sort of post viral fatigue syndromes that may precede ME/ CFS. Five months on and we are now in a situation where some people are being given a diagnosis, or a possible diagnosis, of post COVID-19 ME/CFS. Back in April the ME Association produced an MEA guide to post COVID fatigue and post COVID fatigue syndromes. This information and guidance has now been fully updated to cover all the developments that have occurred since then.
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News ArticleUp to £20 million is available for new research projects which aim to understand and address the longer-term physical and mental health effects of COVID-19 in non-hospitalised individuals. Increasing medical evidence and patient testimony has shown that some people who contract and survive COVID-19 may develop longer-lasting symptoms. Symptoms can range from breathlessness, chronic fatigue, ‘brain fog’, anxiety and stress and can last for months after initially falling ill. These ongoing problems, commonly termed ‘Long-COVID’, may be experienced by patients regardless of how severe their COVID-19 infection was and irrespective of whether they were hospitalised. UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) and the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) are launching a call to fund two or three ambitious and comprehensive proposals and a small number of study extensions that will address ‘Long-COVID’ in the community. This work will complement other major studies already funded by UKRI and NIHR which focus on long covid in hospitalised patients. Projects are expected to start early in the new year and may be funded for up to three years in the first instance. The call will open on 12 November and close on 9 December 2020. Further information
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Community PostJust over a week ago NHS England and NHS Improvement announced the launch of a network of 40 Long COVID clinics over the coming weeks. While there still needs to be more details providing, particularly a clear timeframe for the roll-out of these and information on their locations, I was wondering if anyone has heard about whether there are similar plans for Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales? From a little online research at the moment I've only found the following: Northern Ireland No formal announcements from the Department of Health along these lines. The charity Northern Ireland Chest Heart & Stroke have set up their own Covid Recovery Service. Scotland No immediately obvious proposals from this recent BBC News article covering the issue. Wales Quotes from a BBC News article from the Welsh Government that 'it expected health boards to develop and improve access to rehabilitation services'. This also mentions that the 'Cardiff and Vale Health Board is the first in Wales planning to open a multi-disciplinary rehabilitation service.' Have you heard or seen anything to suggest plans are in place in Northern Ireland, Scotland or Wales to move forward with a similar plan to the NHS in England? Or perhaps an alternative approach?
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News Article
Long covid: Damage to multiple organs presents in young, low risk patients
Patient Safety Learning posted a news article in News
Young, low risk patients with ongoing symptoms of COVID-19 had signs of damage to multiple organs four months after initially being infected, a preprint study has suggested. Initial data from 201 patients suggest that almost 70% had impairments in one or more organs four months after their initial symptoms of SARS-CoV-2 infection. The results emerged as the NHS announced plans to establish a network of more than 40 long covid specialist clinics across England this month to help patients with long term symptoms of infection. The prospective Coverscan study examined the impact of long covid (persistent symptoms three months post infection) across multiple organs in low risk people who are relatively young and had no major underlying health problems. The research has not yet been peer reviewed and could not establish a causal link between organ impairment and infection. But the authors said the results had “implications not only for [the] burden of long covid but also public health approaches which have assumed low risk in young people with no comorbidities.” Read full story Source: BMJ, 17 November 2020 -
News Article
Long Covid: overlap emerges with ME – including debate over treatment
Patient Safety Learning posted a news article in News
As more people suffer lasting symptoms from Covid including fatigue, ME patient advocates fear they will get bad advice, Based on current estimates, about 10% of COVID-19 patients develop lasting symptoms, one of the most common being fatigue. The underlying mechanism is still unclear, but possible explanations include reduced oxygen supply to tissues caused by heart or lung damage, or muscle weakness from prolonged bed rest. However, some doctors are increasingly concerned about the overlap between long Covid and another largely virus-triggered illness: “It’s extraordinary how many people have a postviral syndrome that’s very strikingly similar to myalgic encephalomyelitis (ME)/chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS),” said the US’s top public health official, Dr Anthony Fauci, in July. “They just don’t get back to normal energy or normal feeling of good health.” Like people with ME/CFS, many long-Covid patients report headaches, brain fog, sleep problems, a racing heart, joint and muscle pain and fatigue. Some also experience a relapse of fever, muscle pain and exhaustion, known as “post-exertional malaise”, if they exercise beyond their capabilities. “There are so many similarities between long Covid and ME/CFS it leads me to believe the underlying pathology is probably the same – except that long Covid is presenting as an epidemic, whereas ME/CFS has presented in a very sporadic way, and by no means in such large numbers in such a short space of time,” said Dr William Weir, a consultant in infectious diseases with a special interest in ME. Read full story Source: The Guardian, 19 November 2020 -
Content ArticleWith delays to promised support and trusts accused of penalising staff during their recovery, HSJ dig into why the NHS must provide support sooner rather than later for those experiencing Long-COVID. Patient Safety Learning has recently published a blog calling for better information and engagement with patients who have Long COVID: Clear NHS plan needed to reassure Long COVID patients. We have also co-produced a patient information leaflet with the Royal College of General Practitioners, to help patients understand what they can expect from their GP. To listen to the HSJ podcast, click on the link below.
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Content ArticleIn this blog, Patient Safety Learning reflects on the recent steps taken by the healthcare system in the UK to increase provision and support for people living with Long COVID. It then goes on to consider the importance of engagement and information sharing with patients, outlining suggestions where Patient Safety Learning feel the current NHS approach could be improved.
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News Article
Support for Long COVID patients visiting their GP
Patient Safety Learning posted a news article in News
PRESS RELEASE (London, UK, 19 November 2020) – The charity Patient Safety Learning and the Royal College of GPs have published new guidance to help patients with post COVID-19 syndrome (also known as Long COVID) understand the support they can expect from their GP. This guidance draws on the RCGP's recent summary and top tips for GPs caring for patients with post COVID-19 syndrome. Both these documents have been produced in advance of more detailed national guidance being developed by the National Institute of Health and Care Excellence (NICE), the Scottish Intercollegiate Guidelines Network (SIGN) and the Royal College of GPs, due to be published in December 2020. Helen Hughes, Chief Executive of Patient Safety Learning, said: “We have used the RCGP’s guidance to produce a simple patient-friendly guide to help support people living with Long COVID in the interim period before more detailed guidance is produced by NICE. We hope that this guidance will empower and inform patients, providing them with an evidence-based document that can be shared with those around them. We believe that this will also help raise awareness of the health challenges these patients are facing so that their health and recovery needs can be better met.” Professor Martin Marshall, Chair of the Royal College of GPs, said: “It’s important that patients experiencing debilitating prolonged effects of Covid-19, which we know affect a small but significant number of people who have had the virus, feel that they have the understanding and support of the GPs and other healthcare professionals delivering their care. To this end we hope this guidance is helpful for them. The RCGP is working hard to ensure that the long term effects of Covid-19 are recognised, especially in those who were never admitted to hospital, and that our GP members have interim guidance whilst waiting for formal national guidance, currently being developed by NICE, SIGN and the College, to be published.” Notes to editors: 1. The new Patient Safety Learning and RCGP guidance can be found here: Post COVID-19 syndrome: What support can patients expect from their GP? 2. Patient Safety Learning is a charity and independent voice for improving patient safety. We harness the knowledge, insights, enthusiasm and commitment of health and social care organisations, professionals and patients for system-wide change and the reduction of avoidable harm. We believe patient safety is not just another priority; it is a core purpose of health and social care. Patient safety should not be negotiable. 3. The RCGP guidance for GPs can be found here: RCGP, Management of the long term effects of COVID-19. The RCGP response and top tips for caring for our patients, V1 30 October 2020. -
Content Article
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Many people are experiencing health difficulties for several months after they have been infected with COVID-19. There is work underway to make sure healthcare staff have more information about the longer-term effects of COVID-19 and how to look after these patients safely. This is due to be published by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) at the end of this year. -
EventuntilThis webinar will be chaired by Dr Joanne Fillingham, Deputy Chief Allied Health Professions (AHPs), NHS England & NHS Improvement and will include presentations from: Sarah Cooper, Senior Programme Manager- Post Covid Syndrome, Clinical Policy Unit, NHS England & NHS Improvement Sarah Duncan, Head of Clinical Policy Unit, Medical Directorate, NHS England & NHS Improvement Gordon Bigham, Interim Regional Chief Allied Health Professional Lead – Midlands, NHS England & NHS Improvement The webinar will cover: NHS five-point plan for managing long COVID NICE Guidance and clinical definitions of long COVID Educational resources and materials from HEE Post COVID assessment clinics This webinar will be hosted on Microsoft Teams as a live event and can be accessed using this link at 2:00pm on Tuesday the 24th of November.
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Content ArticleWhen the COVID-19 pandemic began, initial descriptions of the symptomology focused on the clinical presentations of patients in the acute, inpatient setting. In the months since, information on how patients with mild disease present has become available along with information on the fairly common occurrence of asymptomatic disease. More recently, data have emerged that some patients continue to experience symptoms related to COVID-19 after the acute phase of infection. There is currently no clearly delineated consensus definition for the condition: terminology has included “long COVID,” “post-COVID syndrome” and “post-acute COVID-19 syndrome". Among the lay public, the phrase “long haulers” is also being used. Here the COVID-19 Real-Time Learning Network review the current literature on post-acute symptoms in patients with COVID-19, using the term “post-acute COVID-19 syndrome".
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News Article
Major delays for new NHS England covid service
Patient Safety Learning posted a news article in News
A key expansion of services for patients recovering from coronavirus has been delayed by several months, HSJ has learned. In July, NHS England hailed a “ground breaking” new service with the launch of a website with information for patients on how to recover from covid following hospital discharge. It promised a second phase of the service would allow patients to be connected with health professionals for more tailored support, to be launched “later this summer”. But in a memo sent to professional bodies on 30 October, NHSE said the national roll-out was delayed until at least January 2021, with no date confirmed for the launch beyond that. Documents on the website itself said a “first cohort of patients from Leicester will begin to work through the programme” in November, with a further rollout scheduled for early December, followed by a “refresh” in January 2021 and a “full national rollout accessible across the country” at an unspecified date beyond that. The second phase is seen as vital for ensuring that people with covid receive personalised support to help them recover from its debilitating effects, especially as a separate face-to-face rehabilitation programme was scrapped due to costs. Read full story (paywalled) Source: HSJ, 16 November 2020 -
Content Article
Reflections of a COVID-19 Long Hauler (11 November 2020)
Patient Safety Learning posted an article in Blogs
Jeffrey Siegelman awoke on a Monday morning with a headache. Fever followed, and the next morning could taste nothing. Now, after more than 3 months of living with COVID-19 and the fatigue that has kept him couch-bound, Jeffrey reflects on what it means to be a patient, how an illness ripples through family and community, and how he will use this experience to be a better physician. Here is what he has learned. -
News Article
NHS launches 40 ‘long COVID’ clinics to tackle persistent symptoms
Patient Safety Learning posted a news article in News
The NHS will launch a network of more than 40 ‘long COVID’ specialist clinics within weeks to help thousands of patients suffering debilitating effects of the virus months after being infected. The clinics, due to start opening at the end of November, will bring together doctors, nurses, therapist and other NHS staff to physical and psychological assessments of those experiencing enduring symptoms. NHS England has provided £10 million to fund the pioneering clinics, which will see patients who have been hospitalised, officially diagnosed after a test or reasonably believe they had COVID-19. Ten sites have been earmarked for the Midlands, seven in the North East, six in the East of England, South West and South East respectively, five in London and three in the North West. Patients will be able to access services through a GP referral or referral from other healthcare professional, allowing doctors an opportunity to rule out any other possible underlying causes for symptoms, such as suspected stroke, lung cancers or respiratory conditions. The NHS has also launched a new taskforce, with patients, charities, researchers and clinicians, to help manage the NHS approach to ‘long COVID’ and produce information and support materials for patients and healthcare professionals to develop a wider understanding of the condition. NHS Chief Executive Sir Simon Stevens said: “Long COVID is already having a very serious impact on many people’s lives and could well go on to affect hundreds of thousands. “That is why, while treating rising numbers of patients who are sick with the virus and many more who do not have it, the NHS is taking action to address those suffering ongoing health issues." “These pioneering ‘long COVID’ clinics will help address the very real problems being faced by patients today while the taskforce will help the NHS develop a greater understanding of the lasting effects of coronavirus.” Read full press release Source: NHS England, 15 November 2020 -
News Article
Damage to multiple organs recorded in 'long Covid' cases
Patient Safety Learning posted a news article in News
Young and previously healthy people with ongoing symptoms of COVID-19 are showing signs of damage to multiple organs four months after the initial infection, a study suggests. The findings are a step towards unpicking the physical underpinnings and developing treatments for some of the strange and extensive symptoms experienced by people with “long Covid”, which is thought to affect more than 60,000 people in the UK. Fatigue, brain fog, breathlessness and pain are among the most frequently reported effects. On Sunday, the NHS announced it would launch a network of more than 40 long Covid specialist clinics where doctors, nurses and therapists will assess patients’ physical and psychological symptoms. The Coverscan study aims to assess the long-term impact of COVID-19 on organ health in around 500 “low-risk” individuals – those who are relatively young and without any major underlying health complaints – with ongoing Covid symptoms, through a combination of MRI scans, blood tests, physical measurements and online questionnaires. Preliminary data from the first 200 patients to undergo screening suggests that almost 70% have impairments in one or more organs, including the heart, lungs, liver and pancreas, four months after their initial illness. “The good news is that the impairment is mild, but even with a conservative lens, there is some impairment, and in 25% of people it affects two or more organs,” said Amitava Banerjee, a cardiologist and associate professor of clinical data science at University College London. Read full story Source: The Guardian, 15 November 2020 -
Content ArticleNearly a year into the global coronavirus pandemic, scientists, doctors and patients are beginning to unlock a puzzling phenomenon: For many patients, including young ones who never required hospitalisation, COVID-19 has a devastating second act. Many are dealing with symptoms weeks or months after they were expected to recover, often with puzzling new complications that can affect the entire body—severe fatigue, cognitive issues and memory lapses, digestive problems, erratic heart rates, headaches, dizziness, fluctuating blood pressure, even hair loss. What is surprising to doctors is that many such cases involve people whose original cases weren’t the most serious, undermining the assumption that patients with mild COVID-19 recover within two weeks. Doctors call the condition “post-acute Covid” or “chronic Covid,” and sufferers often refer to themselves as “long haulers” or “long-Covid” patients. “Usually, the patients with bad disease are most likely to have persistent symptoms, but Covid doesn’t work like that,” said Trisha Greenhalgh, professor of primary care at the University of Oxford and the lead author of an August BMJ study that was among the first to define chronic Covid patients as those with symptoms lasting more than 12 weeks and spanning multiple organ systems. Other viral outbreaks, including the original SARS, MERS, Ebola, H1N1 and the Spanish flu, have been associated with long-term symptoms. Scientists reported that some patients experienced fatigue, sleep problems and joint and muscle pain long after their bodies cleared a virus, according to a recent review chronicling the long-term effects of viral infections. What differentiates COVID-19 is the far-reaching nature of its effects. While it starts in the lungs, it often affects many other parts of the body, including the heart, kidneys and the digestive and nervous systems, doctors said. “I haven’t really seen any other illness that affects so many different organ systems in as many different ways as Covid does,” said Zijian Chen, medical director for Mount Sinai Health System’s Center for Post-Covid Care. Read the full article in the Wall Street Journal.
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Content ArticleLecture presentation slides from Professor Carl Philpot, University of East Anglia, on losing your sense of smell with coronavirus.
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Content ArticleLarge numbers of people are being discharged from hospital following COVID-19 without assessment of recovery. Mandal et al. followed 384 patients who had tested positive and had been treated at Barnet Hospital, the Royal Free Hospital or UCLH. Collectively the average length of stay in hospital was 6.5 days. The team found that 54 days after discharge, 69% of patients were still experiencing fatigue, and 53% were suffering from persistent breathlessness. They also found that 34% still had a cough and 15% reported depression. In addition 38% of chest radiographs (X-rays) remained abnormal and 9% were getting worse. The study has identified persisting symptoms and radiological abnormalities in a significant proportion of subjects. These data may assist with the identification of people outside expected recovery trajectories who could benefit from additional rehabilitation and/or further investigation to detect post-COVID complications.
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