People with a long form of Covid-19 have a wide variety of symptoms affecting their entire body. A total of 203 were listed.
- Conducted among 3,762 patients with long Covid, the study lists 203 symptoms of the disease.
- 96% of patients had symptoms that persisted beyond 90 days after infection and 65% had symptoms for at least six months.
- 89.1% of participants also experienced relapses of the disease.
Intense fatigue, post-exercise malaise, brain fog… But also tremors, pruritus, memory problems or even heart palpitations: in patients suffering from a long form of Covid-19, the disease can be expressed in multiple symptoms, making its diagnosis and treatment even more complex.
This is highlighted by a new study published in EClinicalMedicine – the largest study to date of people with long Covid, i.e. whose symptoms persist for more than four weeks after the initial infection.
The researchers created an online questionnaire to characterize the symptom profile and evolution over time in patients with confirmed or suspected long Covid, as well as the impact on their daily life, work and health. A total of 3,762 participants from 56 countries completed the questionnaire, which identified 203 symptoms.
Symptoms beyond six months in 65% of cases
The most common symptoms remain fatigue, post-exertional malaise and cognitive dysfunction, but other symptoms were widely cited by participants. This is the case of visual hallucinations, tremors, itchy skin, changes in the menstrual cycle, sexual dysfunction, heart palpitations, problems with bladder control, shingles, memory loss, visual disturbances, diarrhea or tinnitus.
The other lesson of the study is that the duration of symptoms varies greatly between patients. Of the 3,762 people questioned, 3,608 (96%) thus declared symptoms beyond 90 days, 2,454 (65%) presented symptoms for at least six months and only 233 recovered. 89.1% of the participants also experienced relapses and 45.2% said they needed a reduced work schedule compared to the period before the illness. 22.3% were no longer working at all at the time of the survey.
Better care for patients
“For the first time, this study sheds light on the wide range of symptoms, including neurological, prevalent and persistent in patients with long-term Covid”, says Dr Akami, a neuroscientist at UCL’s Sainsbury Wellcome Center and lead author.
The latter now advocates an expansion of clinical guidelines on the assessment of long-term Covid. Currently, only cardiovascular and respiratory function tests are advised. The scientist wants tests to monitor neuropsychiatric, neurological and activity intolerance symptoms to be included. He also recommends the establishment of national screening programs, accessible to anyone who thinks they are suffering from a long Covid in order to best help patients and offer them the appropriate treatment.
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