Long Covid: the ISS stresses the importance of a preventive diagnosis of Long Covid cases. In the US, there are an estimated 15 million patients
Once recovered from Covid-19, the ordeal may not be over. The Istituto Superiore di Sanità (Iss) raises the alarm on the so-called Long Covid, which is a condition in which the symptoms of the Coronavirus are felt for a prolonged period of time even after the disappearance of the disease. “More than a year after the beginning of the Sars-CoV-2 pandemic – we read in the ISS report” Interim indications on the principles of Long-Covid management “- an important number of people affected by Covid-19 presents clinical manifestations that do not end in the first weeks of the acute symptomatic phase, but can be prolonged precluding a full return to the previous state of health “.
Long Covid symptoms: fatigue, myalgia but also cardiovascular and cognitive disorders
Long Covid can affect anyone, regardless of age and the severity of the Covid-19 infection. This condition has two main forms of symptoms:
General manifestations
- Persistent fatigue
- Asthenia
- Excessive tiredness
- Temperature
- Muscle weakness
- Widespread pains
- Myalgia
- Arthralgia
- Anorexia – decreased appetite
- Sacropenia
Organ-specific manifestations
- Lung problems such as wheezing
- Wheezing
- Persistent cough
- Cardiovascular Disorders
- Neurological disorders
- Gastrointestinal disorders
- Psychiatric disorders
Given the breadth and diversity of symptoms, the ISS emphasizes how important it is to identify patients with Long ovid and how much a multidimensional approach is needed that includes clinical, cognitive, nutritional, psychological and functional aspects. For example, the course of the disease in people with Covid-19 should be monitored by creating a history of previous and current symptoms and their duration.
Long Covid, alarm in the US: “Over 15 million cases, it will be the next public health disaster”
Long Covid is of great concern to researchers, particularly in the United States. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimates that over 114 million Americans were infected with Covid-19 until March 2021 and following the pandemic in the US alone, at least 15 million cases of Long Covid will be recorded. For scientists, this disease could become the most serious national health emergency in the years to come. “Current numbers and trends indicate that Long Covid is the next public health disaster in the future,” reads an article in the New England Journal of medicine (Nejm).
People affected by Long Covid “will have to face a difficult and tortuous experience with the health system, in light of the complex and ambiguous clinical condition”. This pathology is in fact difficult to identify as there are no specific diagnostic tests or biomarkers as occurs for other conditions caused by Covid-19 such as saturation.