Shortness of breath can affect Covid patients for a year: Research

Ground Report | New Delhi: Shortness of breath; Research published in the British medical journal The Lancet Friday states that nearly half of patients who are discharged from hospital for Covid-19 are still suffering from at least one persistent symptom. After a year, they still have fatigue or muscle weakness.

According to Chinese research conducted to better understand the long-term health effects of the epidemic, nearly half of the Covid-19 patients who were admitted to the hospital are still suffering from fatigue and shortness of breath after a year.

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The study, published in The Lancet, said that nearly half of the COVID-19 patients continue to suffer from at least one symptom a year after being discharged from the hospital. The research said – symptoms of fatigue or muscle weakness were found most often in patients.

Shortness of breath

There are millions of people who suffer its effects for weeks or months after having a serious covid infection. Such people may have symptoms ranging from lethargy and fatigue to distraction or shortness of breath. One in three patients still has shortness of breath a year after diagnosis, says the largest-ever research on the condition known as Long Covid. This number is even higher in patients more severely affected by the disease. 

The Lancet said in an editorial published with the study, "Without proven treatment or rehabilitation guidance for a long period of time, it affects the ability of Covid patients to resume normal life and function." "Studies show that it will take more than a year for many patients to fully recover from COVID-19," the editorial said.

The research was conducted on about 1,300 people hospitalized for the coronavirus between January and May 2020 in the central Chinese city of Wuhan. The corona epidemic was spread from Wuhan itself which infected crores of people and which is responsible for the death of more than 4 million people.

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According to the research, the share of patients with at least one symptom dropped from 68 percent after six months to 49 percent after 12 months.

Long covid another challenge

Research says that after six months, in 26 percent of patients, the difficulty in breathing increased to 30 percent after 12 months. The research found that affected women were 43 percent more likely to suffer from fatigue or persistent muscle weakness than affected men.

But researchers said that 88 percent of patients who worked before the disease decision had returned to their jobs a year later. The editorial reads, "Long Covid is a first-order modern medical challenge." More research is needed to understand this condition and better care for the patients suffering from it.

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