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An information session on Covid-19 at the Health Department heard how a young doctor had two major system failures from contracting the virus.
Dr. Owen O’Flynn, 23, who works at Kerry University Hospital, said in the briefing that he had acute respiratory failure and acute heart failure.
He has asked people who believe they are immune to the serious effects of the virus to think twice and follow public health advice.
He said his initial symptoms were a loss of smell and taste, but that he did not qualify for a Covid-19 test at the time as his symptoms were not in the case definition.
Other symptoms followed, such as stomach pain, temperature spikes, profuse sweating, constant vomiting and diarrhea, as well as a rash on various parts of the body.
Dr. O’Flynn said he was tested in the community and the swab was negative.
“This reached a point where I needed hospitalization for what I thought was severe gastroenteritis,” he said.
“I was admitted to the covid pathway at CUH and got another swab that was again negative as I was not actively shedding viruses at the time.”
‘No one is indestructible’ warns a doctor fighting post-Covid syndrome
Dr. O’Flynn said his heart tracing showed signs of damage, as did the enzymes in his heart. He said that two days later, his oxygen levels dropped and an X-ray found a new injury.
“I was informed of a new post-covid syndrome that was beginning to be reported in Italy, which is generally seen in children. Therefore, I was re-sampled, the results of which showed that I had had a Covid-19 infection around 4 a 6 weeks before.. “
Dr. O’Flynn said her condition deteriorated rapidly.
“My oxygen levels dropped and in the space of a minute I couldn’t finish a sentence. Because of how quickly I was deteriorating, I was admitted to the ICU.”
He spent a week in the ICU and during that time suffered from heart and lung failure. His heart was working at less than a third of its normal work rate.
“At that point I started to wonder if I would ever get out of the ICU, would I die there?
“Fortunately, things started to resolve slowly. I was discharged from the intensive care room and a week later I was discharged.
Dr. O’Flynn says about six weeks after his discharge from the hospital to regain a sense of normalcy again.
Dr. Owen O’Flynn, who was treated in the ICU for Covid-19, has asked people who believe they are immune to the severe effects of the virus to think twice and follow public health advice | https://t.co/a49FxmgeY9 pic.twitter.com/SH2Z9lyZM5
– RTÉ News (@rtenews) October 12, 2020
“As for why I am sharing my story, while the elderly are at higher risk for Covid-19, this virus can still have devastating effects on people of any age and there is no real way to know who will deteriorate and who will You will get sick through it without serious symptoms.
“I am 23 years old, I maintained a high level of physical condition and I ended up in the ICU due to Covid-19.
“I urge anyone who thinks they are immune to the most serious effects of this disease to think twice and follow public health advice.”
At the briefing it was reported that 825 new cases of coronavirus have been confirmed, as well as one death related to the virus.
There have now been a total of 43,531 confirmed cases of Covid-19 in Ireland and 1,827 deaths related to the virus.
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