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Found 385 results
  1. News Article
    More than half of people hospitalised with Covid-19 still have at least one symptom two years after they were first infected, according to the longest follow-up study of its kind. While physical and mental health generally improve over time, the analysis suggests that coronavirus patients discharged from hospital still tend to experience poorer health and quality of life than the general population. The research was published in the Lancet Respiratory Medicine. “Our findings indicate that for a certain proportion of hospitalised Covid-19 survivors, while they may have cleared the initial infection, more than two years is needed to recover fully,” said the lead author, Prof Bin Cao, of the China-Japan Friendship hospital in China. Until now, the long-term health effects of Covid-19 have remained largely unknown, as the longest follow-up studies to date have spanned about a year. The absence of pre-Covid-19 health status data and comparisons with the general population in most studies also made it difficult to determine how well patients with Covid-19 have recovered. “Ongoing follow-up of Covid-19 survivors, particularly those with symptoms of long Covid, is essential to understand the longer course of the illness, as is further exploration of the benefits of rehabilitation programmes for recovery,” said Cao. “There is a clear need to provide continued support to a significant proportion of people who’ve had Covid-19, and to understand how vaccines, emerging treatments and variants affect long-term health outcomes.” Read full story Source: The Guardian, 11 May 2022
  2. News Article
    People suffering from long Covid have reacted with alarm to comments by government’s equalities watchdog that the condition should not be treated as a disability. Under the Equalities Act, anyone with a physical or mental impairment that has lasted for longer than 12 months and substantially impacted their ability to carry out normal day-to-day activities qualifies as disabled and is entitled to protection to ensure that they aren’t discriminated against in the workplace. This includes requesting that their employer makes “reasonable adjustments”, such as flexible working hours or home working, to ensure that they can continue working. In a tweet posted on Sunday night, the Equalities and Human Rights Commission (EHRC), which was set up to promote and enforce equality and non-discrimination laws said: “Discussions continue on whether ‘long Covid’ symptoms constitute a disability. Without case law or scientific consensus, EHRC does not recommend that ‘long Covid’ be treated as a disability.” The statement prompted immediate concern and confusion from long Covid support groups and unions. Dr Jenny Ceolta-Smith, an employment advocate for Long Covid Support and co-founder of Occupational Therapy for Long Covid, said: “There is already disbelief of workers’ long Covid symptoms within the workplace, and this harmful announcement by the EHRC may make it much harder for workers to gain the support that they need from colleagues and line managers. It may even mean more jobs are lost.” Read full story Source: The Guardian, 9 May 2022
  3. News Article
    Remdesivir has no significant effect on patients with Covid-19 who are already being ventilated but has a small effect against death or progression to ventilation among other patients admitted to hospital, the World Health Organization’s Solidarity trial has found. This appears to be a change from findings reported in February 2021, when preliminary trial data suggested that remdesivir “had little or no effect on patients admitted to hospital with Covid-19.” The updated results, published in the Lancet, reported that overall 14.5% of patients assigned to remdesivir died compared with 15.6% assigned to the control group. The release of these results has prompted questions about why it has taken so long to publish these data, especially considering WHO’s recommendation against the use of remdesivir in patients with Covid-19. Read full story Source: BMJ, 4 May 2022
  4. News Article
    Fewer than one in three people who have been hospitalised with Covid-19 have fully recovered a year after they succumbed to infection. That is the shock finding of a survey into the impact of long Covid in the UK. The team of scientists and doctors at Leicester University also found that women had poorer recovery rates than men after hospitalisation, while obesity was also likely to hinder a person’s prospects of health improvements. Among the symptoms reported by patients a year after their initial infection were fatigue, muscle pain, poor sleep and breathlessness. “Given that more than 750,000 people have been hospitalised in the UK with Covid-19 over the past two years, it is clear from our research that the legacy of this disease is going to be huge,” said Rachael Evans, one of the study’s authors. The team stressed their results show there is now an urgent need to develop ways to tackle Long Covid. “Without effective treatments, Long Covid could become a highly prevalent long-term condition,” said Professor Chris Brightling, another author. A critical factor in these poor rates of recovery was the lack of treatments that exist for Long Covid, added Professor Louise Wain, who was also involved in the study. “No specific therapeutics exist for long Covid and our data highlights that effective interventions are urgently required.” The researchers also found that many of those reporting impairment in the wake of their hospitalisation were suffering from persistent inflammation. “That suggests these groups might respond to anti-inflammatory strategies,” added Wain. Read full story Source: The Guardian, 24 April 2022
  5. News Article
    An analysis of data from 50 studies looking at 1.6 million people suggests that as much as 43% of those infected with the coronavirus experienced post-Covid conditions, pointing to the need for better diagnosis and care for “long Covid” patients. Post-Covid conditions are clinically defined by the World Health Organization (WHO) as mid- and long-term symptoms – also known as Long Covid – occurring in individuals after infection with the SARS-CoV-2 virus. The research, published this week in the Journal of Infectious Disease, assessed 23 symptoms reported across 36 of the studies and found that shortness of breath, sleep problems, and joint pain was widely reported by those who had recovered from the novel coronavirus infection. Researchers say fatigue (23%) and memory problems (14%) were the most common symptoms of individuals experiencing post-Covid conditions. While about 34% of non-hospitalised coronavirus patients report lingering post-Covid symptoms, scientists say this rate jumps to over 50% for hospitalised Covid patients. “Long Covid is quite common overall and across geographic regions, sex and acute COVID-19 severity. Knowing this, providers should take proactive approaches such that their patients are well-supported when experiencing long-term health effects of Covid-19,” scientists wrote in the study. Read full story Source: The Independent, 21 April 2022
  6. News Article
    A healthcare worker caught Covid on two separate occasions over the course of just 20 days, a new study has shown. It is believed to be the shortest recorded time between two infections since the start of the pandemic. Since the arrival of the highly infectious Omicron variant, reinfections have become far more prominent. The 31-year-old woman from Spain first became infected with Delta in December 2021 – 12 days after she had received her Covid booster vaccine. Lab analysis showed that she had initially been infected by the Delta variant, followed by Omicron. Her case, which is being presented to the European Congress of Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases in Portugal, is believed to represent the shortest recorded time between two separate infections. Dr Gemma Recio of the Institut Catala de la Salut in Spain, who is one of the study’s authors, said: “This case highlights the potential of the Omicron variant to evade the previous immunity acquired either from a natural infection with other variants or from vaccines". “In other words, people who have had Covid-19 cannot assume they are protected against reinfection, even if they have been fully vaccinated." Read full story Source: The Independent, 21 April 2022
  7. News Article
    Ministers should reconsider England’s “living with Covid” plans, health leaders have said, while accusing the government of ignoring the ongoing threat for ideological reasons. The NHS Confederation, which represents organisations across the healthcare sector, has accused No 10 of having “abandoned any interest” in the pandemic, despite a new Omicron surge putting pressure on an already overstretched NHS. “The brutal reality for staff and patients is that this Easter in the NHS is as bad as any winter,” said Matthew Taylor, the chief executive of the NHS Confederation. "We do not have a living-with-Covid plan, we have a living-without-restrictions ideology. “But instead of the understanding and support NHS staff received during 2020 and 2021, we have a government that seems to want to wash its hands of responsibility for what is occurring in plain sight in local services up and down the country. No 10 has seemingly abandoned any interest in Covid whatsoever. “NHS leaders and their teams feel abandoned by the government and they deserve better.” Taylor later told BBC Breakfast: “In our view, we do not have a ‘living with Covid’ plan, we have a ‘living without restrictions’ ideology, which is different. We need to put in place the measures that are necessary to try to alleviate the pressures on our health service while this virus continues to affect [it].” Read full story Source: BBC News, 11 April 2022
  8. News Article
    It has long been clear that Black Americans have experienced high rates of coronavirus infection, hospitalisation and death throughout the pandemic. But those factors are now leading experts to sound the alarm about what will may come next: a prevalence of Long Covid in the Black community and a lack of access to treatment. Long Covid — with chronic symptoms like fatigue, cognitive problems and others that linger for months after an acute coronavirus infection has cleared up — has perplexed researchers, and many are working hard to find a treatment for people experiencing it. But health experts warn that crucial data is missing: Black Americans have not been sufficiently included in Long-Covid trials, treatment programmes and registries, according to the authors of a new report released on Tuesday. “We expect there are going to be greater barriers to access the resources and services available for Long Covid,” said one of the authors, Dr. Marcella Nunez-Smith, who is the director of Yale University’s health equity office and a former chair of President Biden’s health equity task force. “The pandemic isn’t over, it isn’t over for anyone,” Dr. Nunez-Smith said. “But the reality is, it’s certainly not over in Black America.” In the first three months of the pandemic, the average weekly case rate per 100,000 Black Americans was 36.2, compared with 12.5 for white Americans, the authors write. The Black hospitalisation rate was 12.6 per 100,000 people, compared with 4 per 100,000 for white people, and the death rate was also higher: 3.6 per 100,000 compared with 1.8 per 100,000. “The severity of Covid-19 among Black Americans was the predictable result of structural and societal realities, not differences in genetic predisposition.” "Many Black Americans who contracted the coronavirus experienced serious illness because of pre-existing conditions like obesity, hypertension and chronic kidney disease, which themselves were often the result of “differential access to high-quality care and health promoting resources,” the report says. Read full story (paywalled) Source: New York Times, 29 March 2022
  9. News Article
    Scottish Liberal Democrat leader and health spokesperson Alex Cole-Hamilton MSP today said the SNP/Green Government has “yet again let down long Covid sufferers” as it is revealed that not a single penny of the £10 million announced by ministers last September has been spent. On 9 September 2021, the Scottish Government announced the £10 million Long Covid Support Fund. Now a parliamentary question from Alex Cole-Hamilton and a freedom of information request have confirmed that the money remains entirely unspent. Alex Cole-Hamilton commented: “The latest official statistics showed a record are a record 119,000 long Covid sufferers in Scotland. The SNP/Green Government has let down every single one of them by failing to spend any of the £10 million it announced last September. “Time and again I have pressed Nicola Sturgeon for answers on the absence of long Covid clinics, pressed for automatic referrals and urged the rollout of in-home support for sufferers. Now we’ve learned that none of the money announced more than six months ago has been spent. “Long Covid sufferers need new hope. Scottish Liberal Democrats are determined to see the rollout of proper care. Read full story Source: Scottish Liberal Democrats, 27 March 2022
  10. News Article
    Long Covid could create a generation affected by disability, with people forced out of their homes and work, and some even driven to suicide, a leading expert has warned. In an exclusive interview with the Guardian, Prof Danny Altmann – an immunologist at Imperial College London – said that the UK’s current approach to Covid fails to take the impact of infections sufficiently seriously, adding that more needs to be done to aid diagnosis and treatment of Long Covid. “It’s kind of an anathema to me that we’ve kind of thrown in the towel on control of Omicron wave infections and have said ‘it’s endemic, and we don’t care any more, because it’s very benign’,” he said. “It just isn’t. And there are new people joining the long Covid support groups all the time with their disabilities. It’s really not OK, and it’s heartbreaking.” According to data from the Office for National Statistics, by the end of January this year about 1.5 million people – or 2.4% of the population – in the UK said they were experiencing ongoing symptoms more than four weeks after their first suspected Covid infection, with 45% reporting that infection was a year or more ago. The findings chime with a recent UK study that found only around one in three patients who had ongoing Covid symptoms after being hospitalised with the disease reported feeling fully recovered a year later. Asked whether Long Covid could lead to a generation affected by disability, Altmann agreed. “Totally,” he said. Read full story Source: The Guardian, 23 March 2022
  11. News Article
    A vaccine has been used to free a man who was trapped at home by a Covid infection that lasted for more than seven months. It is the first time that a vaccine has been used to "treat" Covid rather than "prevent" it. Ian Lester, 37, has a weakened immune system due to Wiskott-Aldrich syndrome, and was unable to defeat the virus on its own. He says he became a prisoner in his home in Caerphilly, Wales, as he isolated for months on end. He shielded during the first wave of Covid, but coronavirus eventually found him in December 2020. He had one of the classic symptoms - a slight loss of sense of taste and smell - which cleared up within a month. For most of us that would be the end of it, but Ian's Covid journey was only just beginning. His doctors wanted him to keep on testing because his weakened immune system meant there was a risk he could be contagious for longer than normal. But month after month, test after test came back positive. Ian had to give up work. Scientists and doctors were monitoring the battle between the virus and Ian's immune system at Cardiff University and at the Immunodeficiency Centre for Wales in the University Hospital of Wales. The analysis showed Ian had a long-term infection, it was not just "dead virus" being detected, and his symptoms were not long-Covid. Prof Stephen Jolles, clinical lead at the Immunodeficiency Centre, said: "This infection was burbling along, but with his [weakened] immune system it was just not enough to kick off a response sufficient to clear it. "So the vaccine really made a huge difference, in antibodies and T-cells, and utilised and squeezed every last drop out of what his immune system could do." Read full story Source: BBC News, 21 March 2022
  12. News Article
    People who suffer from severe Covid-19 symptoms are more likely to have long-term mental health problems, a new study suggests. Higher rates of depression and anxiety have been found in people who were “bedridden” with Covid-19 for more than seven days last year, according to a study published in the Lancet. Scientists, drawing on data from 247,249 people across the UK, Denmark, Estonia, Iceland, Norway and Sweden, found that people with coronavirus who were not admitted to hospital were more likely to experience symptoms of depression up to 16 months after diagnosis, compared to those never infected. However, over 16 months, patients who were bedridden for seven days or more were between 50 and 60% more likely to experience higher levels of depression and anxiety compared to people never infected during the study period, the researchers found. Overall, people diagnosed with Covid-19 had a higher prevalence of depression and poorer sleep quality compared with individuals who were never diagnosed – 20% of those in the former group experienced symptoms of depression, versus 11% in the latter group. Researchers suggested patients who spent longer in bed or had higher depression or anxiety rates could be suffering from ill health due to a combination of worrying about long-term health effects and Covid symptoms persisting. Patients with severe Covid often experience inflammation, which has previously been linked to chronic mental illness, particularly depression. Read full story Source: The Independent, 15 March 2022
  13. News Article
    Deepa Singh, 30, of Louisville, USA, has been seriously ill for two years, racked with extreme fatigue, racing heartbeat and memory problems from Long covid that she says prevent her from working. Adding to her distress, she says, has been a grueling — and so far unsuccessful — battle for disability payments. Singh, who worked as a project manager, is among a cohort of Long Covid patients who have been denied disability benefits, either by private insurance companies, which operate benefit plans offered by employers, or by the Social Security Administration, which manages government disability benefits. Tasked with sorting legitimate health claims from fraudulent or marginal ones, these gatekeepers now face a novel challenge as the coronavirus pandemic drags on: a flood of claims citing a post-infection syndrome that is poorly understood by the medical community and difficult to measure. Patients cite a litany of symptoms that defy verification through basic medical tests. They become exhausted at the merest exertion. They can’t remember simple words. Their hearts feel like they are fluttering. Yet neurological exams, ECGs and chest X-rays come back clean. Doctors said in interviews they are treating Long Covid patients who are clearly too sick to work but who have difficulty meeting the evidence threshold insurers demand: objective medical test results showing an inability to perform work. Specialized tests can measure a few Long Covid-related problems, such as a central nervous system disorder called dysautonomia, which affects the body’s ability to regulate itself. But there are months-long waiting lists for the tests, doctors and patients said. The challenges are similar to those faced for years by people claiming disabilities based on chronic fatigue syndrome. But the pandemic has given rise to such claims on a far greater scale. Read full story (paywalled) Source: The Washington Post, 8 March 2022
  14. News Article
    Catching Covid may cause changes to the brain, a study suggests. Scientists found significant differences in MRI (magnetic resonance imaging) scans before and after infection. Even after a mild infection, the overall size of the brain had shrunk slightly, with less grey matter in the parts related to smell and memory. The researchers do not know whether the changes are permanent but stressed the brain could heal. Lead author Prof Gwenaelle Douaud, from the Wellcome Centre for Integrative Neuroimaging, at the University of Oxford, said: "We were looking at essentially mild infection, so to see that we could really see some differences in their brain and how much their brain had changed compared with those who had not been infected was quite a surprise." But the researchers do not know whether the changes are reversible or truly matter for health and wellbeing. "We need to bear in mind that the brain is really plastic - by that we mean it can heal itself - so there is a really good chance that, over time, the harmful effects of infection will ease," Prof Douaud said. The most significant loss of grey matter was in the olfactory areas - but it is unclear whether the virus directly attacks this region or cells simply die off through lack of use after people with Covid lose their sense of smell. UK Biobank chief scientist Prof Naomi Allen said: "It opens up all sorts of questions that other researchers can follow up about the effect of coronavirus infection on cognitive function, on brain fog and on other areas of the brain - and to really focus research on how best to mitigate that." Read full story Source: BBC News, 8 March 2022
  15. News Article
    Today the Government is expected to announce the end to all Covid restrictions, including ending self-isolation and free testing in the country. However, in an open letter to the UK's Chief Medical Officer and Chief Scientific Officer, the UK science and medical communities say this is a "HUGE mistake". The open letter expresses concern about the Government plans to end testing, surveillance surveys and legal isolation of Covid-19 cases and asks the Government to clarify the scientific advice underpinning these policy decisions as they do not believe there is a solid scientific basis for the policy. "It is almost certain to increase the circulation of the virus and remove the visibility of emerging variants of concern." "The emergence of new variants and a resultant wave of infections can occur very quickly, potentially within just several weeks. The ability to rapidly detect and characterise new variants and to scale up necessary responses (such as TTI and vaccinations) quickly will be very important. Considerations for future response preparedness and surveillance infrastructure should take this into account." "We believe humanity is in a race against the virus." The letter goes on to say that some form of surveillance must be continued to ensure the situation is well understood and new variants of concern identified. Lack of testing is not only detrimental to controlling the spread of SARSCoV2 and detecting new variants, it also puts people who develop Long Covid at a great disadvantage by not having a confirmation of their infection, which is integral to the diagnosis, support and care they need to receive. For the 1 in 4 people in the UK who are clinically vulnerable, the current approach appears a perilous and politicised pandemic response. The authors of the letter are asking members of the UK science and medical communities to sign the open letter. Read the letter in full and sign here
  16. News Article
    An estimated 430,000 Britons were still suffering from Long Covid two years after first contracting the virus, according to data released by the Office for National Statistics (ONS). One in every 32 people in the UK was estimated to have some form of Long Covid at the end of July, equivalent to 2 million people. Of those, around 1.5 million said their symptoms were adversely affecting their daily activities, while 384,000 said their ability to undertake daily activities had been “limited a lot”. Fatigue continues to be the most common symptom reported by individuals with long Covid, with 62% reporting weakness or tiredness. More than a third, 37%, of those surveyed reported shortness of breath as one of their symptoms, while difficulty concentrating (33%) and muscle ache (31%) were the next most cited symptoms. Kelly Fearnley, a foundation doctor at Bradford Royal Infirmary, said: “Long Covid is not only crippling the health of the nation, it is destroying the health of our economy. “Research efforts so far have been slow and underfunded, and fail to reflect the scale and urgency of the problem. “Not only are some people not recovering, they are deteriorating. People have not only lost their health and independence, they are losing their jobs, financial security and homes.” Read full story Source: The Guardian, 1 September 2022
  17. News Article
    Two years after having Covid-19, diagnoses of brain fog, dementia and epilepsy are more common than after other respiratory infections, a study by the University of Oxford suggests. But anxiety and depression are no more likely in adults or children two years on, the research found. More research is needed to understand how and why Covid could lead to other conditions. This study looked at the risks of 14 different disorders in 1.25 million patients two years on from Covid, mostly in the US. It then compared them with a closely-matched group of 1.25 million people who had a different respiratory infection. In the group who had Covid, after two years, there were more new cases of: dementia, stroke and brain fog in adults aged over 65 brain fog in adults aged 18-64 epilepsy and psychotic disorders in children, although the overall risks were small. Some disorders became less common two years after Covid, including: anxiety and depression in children and adults psychotic disorders in adults. The increased risk of depression and anxiety in adults lasts less than two months before returning to normal levels, the research found. Read full story Source BBC News, 18 August 2022
  18. News Article
    One in twenty people in the UK who are neither employed nor seeking paid work are suffering from Long Covid, with the figure more than doubling in the past year, official data has revealed. The proportion is far higher than for the 1 in 29 people who are unemployed but seeking work who have long Covid symptoms, or the one in 30 employed people who are sufferers, data released by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) shows. Individuals who are not employed and are not looking for paid work are classified as being economically inactive. The data suggests the long-term impacts of the virus could be driving people into this category, or into retirement. Read full story Source: The Guardian, 4 August 2022
  19. News Article
    One in eight Covid-19 patients (12.7%) is likely to experience long term symptoms, a study from the Netherlands has reported. Using digital questionnaires, researchers collected data on the frequency of 23 symptoms commonly associated with Covid in an uninfected population and in people who had had a Covid diagnosis. The findings, published in the Lancet, found that 21.4% of adults who had had Covid experienced at least one new or severely increased symptom three to five months after infection when compared with before. This compared with only 8.7% of uninfected people followed over the same period. The core Long Covid symptoms highlighted by the researchers include chest pain, difficulties breathing, pain when breathing, painful muscles, loss of taste and smell, tingling extremities, lump in throat, feeling hot and cold, heavy arms or legs, and general tiredness. Read full story Source: BMJ, 4 August 2022
  20. News Article
    Patients with long-lasting symptoms from Covid will have access to more convenient tests and checks closer to home, under new NHS measures announced. Specialist clinics, dedicated to Long Covid, will now be able to send people for tests at local one stop shops and mobile clinics, rather than people going back to their GP practice for multiple different tests. Backed by an additional £90 million investment, the updated Long Covid plan includes ambitions for all patients to have an initial assessment within six weeks to ensure they are diagnosed and treated quickly. Latest estimates from the ONS show that around 1.6 million people in England are experiencing ongoing COVID symptoms lasting more than four weeks, with around one in five saying it has a significant impact on their daily life. The plan, which has been developed with expert insights from patients, clinicians and partners across the health and care system, shows the NHS has already made significant progress on delivering the 10 commitments it set out for Long Covid services just over one year ago. This includes establishing a nationwide network of 90 specialist long COVID clinics, 14 hubs for children and young people and investment in training and guidance to support GP teams in managing the condition. Dr Kiren Collison, GP and chair of the NHS long COVID taskforce said: “Long COVID can be devastating for those living with it, and while we continue to learn more about this new condition, it’s important people know they’re not alone, and that the NHS is here for them. “In just under two years, the NHS has invested £224m to support people experiencing long term effects from COVID – from setting up specialist clinics, hubs for children, and an online recovery platform, to providing training for GP teams. “Today’s plan builds on this world-leading care, to ensure support is there for everyone who needs it, and that patients requiring specialist support can access care in a timely and more convenient way.” Read full story Source: NHS England, 28 July 2022
  21. News Article
    Patients who contract Covid-19 are at increased risk of being diagnosed with cardiovascular disorders and diabetes in the three months following infection, although the risk then declines back to baseline levels, a large UK study has found. Researchers from King’s College London say patients recovering from Covid-19 should be advised to consider measures to reduce diabetes risk including adopting a healthy diet and taking exercise. The GP medical records from more than 428,650 Covid-19 patients were matched with the same number of controls and followed up to January 2022. All patients with pre-existing diabetes or cardiovascular disease were excluded from the study, published in the open access journal PLOS Medicine. According to the analysis, diabetes mellitus diagnoses were increased by 81% in acute covid-19 and remained elevated by 27% from 4 to 12 weeks after infection. Lead study author Emma Rezel-Potts said, “While it is in the first four weeks that covid-19 patients are most at risk of these outcomes, the risk of diabetes mellitus remains increased for at least 12 weeks. Clinical and public health interventions focusing on reducing diabetes risk among those recovering from covid-19 over the longer term may be beneficial.” The researchers said that people without pre-existing cardiovascular disease or diabetes who become infected with covid-19 do not appear to have a long term increase in incidence of these conditions. Read full story Source: BMJ, 22 July 2022
  22. News Article
    NHS leaders have sometimes been “shouting into the void” about their fears of the health service being overwhelmed by Covid because of the absence of a single national command centre for the pandemic response, a new report argues. The Tony Blair Institute for Global Change has published a report which recommends short and long term actions for dealing with Covid and future health emergencies. It says the government should have previously, and should now, set up “a national centre for response” to have overriding national responsibility for managing Covid and future crises. The government should also shift away from traditional methods of communication, to instead listen to “communities… beliefs and fears” about Covid, and adjust messages to respond to these. The report has been authored by the institute’s head of health Henry Dowlen, who was seconded to work on several pandemic projects such as a setting up a Nightingale Hospital and coordinating regional and national response work. He said that if government did not change course then the NHS, along with other services and parts of society, would remain in a “vicious cycle” of operational problems. Read full story (paywalled) Source: HSJ, 20 July 2022
  23. News Article
    A possible link between blood clots and ongoing symptoms of Covid is under scrutiny by researchers in the UK. While Covid can cause a period of acute illness, it can also lead to longer-term problems. Research has suggested fewer than a third of patients who have ongoing Covid symptoms after being hospitalised with the disease feel fully recovered a year later. Now researchers are due to begin a number of trials to explore whether blood thinners may help those who have had the disease. Prof Ami Banerjee, of University College London, who is leading a study called Stimulate-ICP, said it was known that a Covid infection increases the risk of blood clots, and that people who have had the disease have a greater risk of related conditions including stroke, heart attacks and deep vein thrombosis. In addition, Banerjee said research from scientists in South Africa had suggested that people with long Covid have microclots in their blood, while studies in the UK suggested almost a third of long Covid patients have clotting abnormalities. But he said it was not clear if the findings were generalisable, and while there had been calls on social media for anticoagulants to be made available on the basis of such findings, further research was needed, not least as blood thinners can lead to an increased risk of bleeds. Read full story Source: The Guardian, 27 June 2022
  24. News Article
    Last year, Diana Berrent—the founder of Survivor Corps, a US Long COVID support group—asked the group’s members if they’d ever had thoughts of suicide since developing Long Covid. About 18% of people who responded said they had, a number much higher than the 4% of the general US adult population that has experienced recent suicidal thoughts. A few weeks ago, Berrent posed the same question to current members of her group. This time, of the nearly 200 people who responded, 45% said they’d contemplated suicide. While her poll was small and informal, the results point to a serious problem. “People are suffering in a way that I don’t think the general public understands,” Berrent says. “Not only are people mourning the life that they thought they were going to have, they are in excruciating pain with no answers.” Long Covid, a chronic condition that affects millions of Americans who’ve had COVID-19, often looks nothing like acute COVID-19. Sufferers report more than 200 symptoms affecting nearly every part of the body, including the neurologic, cardiovascular, respiratory, and gastrointestinal systems. The condition ranges in severity, but many so-called “long-haulers” are unable to work, go to school, or leave their homes with any sort of consistency. Long COVID can also be incredibly painful, and research has linked chronic physical pain to an increased risk of suicide. Nick Güthe has been trying to spread that message since his wife, Heidi Ferrer, died by suicide in 2021 after living with Long Covid symptoms for about a year. Among her most disruptive symptoms, Güthe says, were foot pain that prevented her from walking comfortably, tremors, and vibrating sensations in her chest that kept her from sleeping. “My wife didn’t kill herself because she was depressed,” Güthe says. “She killed herself because she was in excruciating physical pain.” Read full story Source: Time. 13 June 2022
  25. News Article
    Health boards are avoiding publicising their Long Covid services to avoid a rush of patients, an expert has claimed. Edward Duncan, a professor of applied health research, has been evaluating rehabilitation services in Scotland for the past eight months. The latest ONS figures showed 155,000 Scots had long lasting Covid symptoms. Prof Duncan said the current situation was contributing to a "trickle" of patients accessing treatment in some regions. He is working with Robert Gordon University, the University of Dundee and Long Covid sufferers to work out the best way to maximise recovery and quality of life for patients. It comes after patient groups accused the health service and government ministers of pretending the illness has disappeared. Prof Duncan said: "Staff in some health boards have said to us that they are purposely not publicising the pathway, because they fear that if they do, they will have so many referrals that they will not be able to meet demand." "There is a lack of proactive publicity, despite the fact that in late 2020 every health board said that these services were there for patients who need them." "We know from other research that patients are going to primary care and being told by their GP that they don't know where to send them." Read full story Source: BBC News, 14 June 2022
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