BackNew study shows hair loss and lower libido among long Covid symptoms; details here
A new study published in the journal Nature Medicine shows that 62 symptoms associated with long COVID were identified.
PremiumTime and again study has shown and warned about long Covid. From heart diseases to nervous system ailments, the disease can give you some serious trouble. About 2 million people in the UK have persistent symptoms after COVID infection, termed long COVID. Commonly reported long COVID symptoms include fatigue and shortness of breath, have a significant effect on people’s daily activities, quality of life and capacity to work.
But long COVID symptoms are much broader than this. A new study published in the journal Nature Medicine shows that 62 symptoms associated with long COVID were identified.
Also Read: Are children with Covid-19 symptoms at higher risk for long Covid? What new study says
Some of these symptoms were known to all, like loss of sense of smell, shortness of breath and fatigue. But some of the symptoms that were found to be strongly associated with COVID beyond 12 weeks were surprising and less well known, such as hair loss and reduced libido.
As per the study, other symptoms included chest pain, fever, bowel incontinence, erectile dysfunction and limb swelling.
The study shows that these differences in symptoms reported between the infected and uninfected groups remained even after we accounted for age, sex, ethnic group, socioeconomic status, body mass index, smoking status, the presence of more than 80 health conditions, and past reporting of the same symptom. It also found that people who had been diagnosed with COVID were significantly more likely to report 62 symptoms, only 20 of which are included in the WHO’s clinical case definition for long COVID.
The study analysed electronic primary care records from more than 450,000 people in England with a confirmed diagnosis of COVID, and 1.9 million people with no prior history of COVID, from January 2020 to April 2021.
"We matched both groups very closely in terms of their demographic, social and clinical characteristics. We then assessed the relative differences in the reporting of 115 symptoms to GPs. For those who had COVID, we measured this at least 12 weeks after they were infected."
Given the breadth and diversity of long COVID symptoms reported in surveys, long COVID is unlikely to represent a single condition, but rather a group of distinct conditions that occur as a consequence of COVID infection.
The analysis suggests that long COVID can be characterised into three distinct groups based on clusters of symptoms reported. The largest group, consisting of roughly 80 per cent of people with long COVID in our study, faced a broad spectrum of symptoms, ranging from fatigue, to headache, to pain.
The second largest group, representing 15 per cent, predominantly had mental health and cognitive symptoms, including depression, anxiety, brain fog and insomnia. The third and smallest group, capturing the remaining 5 per cent, had mainly respiratory symptoms such as shortness of breath, cough and wheeze.
Prior to this, a study had claimed that people infected with coronavirus are more likely to develop diabetes or hypertension after a few months.
Earlier, epidemiologist and health economist Eric Feigl-Ding shared a video where the COVID survivors speak about how hard their life has become since the infection.
In the video, one survivor asserts, “My food tastes like it comes from a dumpster housing a dead raccoon", while another said, “My hair is falling out". The video was produced by the news website Brut.
What are the treatments for Long COVID?
Patients with long COVID need tailored health services which recognise that long COVID is not a single condition but a diverse group of overlapping conditions needing individualised care. Some patients report difficulty obtaining a long COVID diagnosis, which complicates efforts to get support, such as disability assistance and clinical care. Patients experiencing several symptoms may need to consult with multiple specialists.
(With inputs from PTI)
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