“The bad news is that people have been showing lung damage since Covid-19 weeks after discharge; the good news is that the moment tends to ease over time, indicating that the lungs have a system in place to improve themselves,” said Dr. Sabina. Sahanik, a PhD student at the University Clinic in Innsbruck, Austria, involved in a clinical report, said in a news release.
So far, only abstract studies of the new research have been published and these findings are preliminary, but they will shed new light on the long-term effects of Covid-19.
Each assessment included clinical examination, laboratory testing, analysis of lung function, chest CT scan and cardiac echocardiogram, Sahanik said. The research will continue for 24 weeks for the third evaluation.
At six weeks, Sahanik and her colleagues in Hannia found that 65.9% of patients showed persistent Covid-19 symptoms, with shortness of breath and coughing being the most common.
“Approximately 0% of the study population showed shortness of breath six weeks after discharge from the hospital, which improved slightly by the time the two visited,” Sahanik said. “Regarding our CT findings, we found that approximately 88% of our study population showed pathological findings during the visit, which was mixed with 56% in visit two.”
The researchers also noted in their study abstraction that some patients showed left ventricular diastolic dysfunction in the heart, referring to the inability of the ventricle to fill normal volume and abnormality of lung function.
“Covid-1 survivors retain lung defects weeks after recovery. However, a modest improvement can be found over time.” “Therefore, structured follow-up will be considered among Kovid-19 survivors.”
These preliminary findings have only been presented – not published in a peer-reviewed journal – and they come with limitations, in which patient samples were small and many of the study participants had a history of smoking. Further research is needed to determine whether similar findings will emerge in a larger and more diverse group of patients.
Way of recovery
Another study, presented at the European Respiratory Society International Congress on Friday, found that in 19 patients with severe covid-19, there was an improvement in lung capacity, balance, muscle strength, fatigue and some risk factors as they underwent pulmonary rehabilitation early in their recovery process. Depression and anxiety.
However, the ability to walk does not appear to have been fully recovered, indicating that further rehabilitation may be required, and there is no improvement in the symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder from Covid-19 according to these preliminary findings.
“At the psychological level, some patients also had severe traumatic stress disorder after recovery but they could not improve after rehabilitation,” said Yara Al Chikhni, a PhD student at the Diolefit Santi Clinic for Pulmonary Rehabilitation in France. Said during a news conference on Friday.
One patient was “disturbed by memories and flashbacks. Whenever the end was thinking about int motivation and was admitted to the hospital in Covid-19, she had nightmares and rapid heartbeats,” Al Chikhani said. “He remembers nothing but a desire to get himself out.”
Preliminary findings come with some limitations, including the need for more research to investigate rehabilitation in a large group of patients – and these findings have not been published in a peer-reviewed journal.
Overall, “Since the onset of the COVID-19 epidemic, hypothetical evidence has emerged that many patients tolerate long-term effects from coronavirus,” said Thierry Trusters, president of the European Respiratory Society – who was not involved. New research but held a press conference Friday – said in a news release.
“Dr. Sa. Shahnik’s presentation is important because he is one of the first, broadest possible follow-up of these patients, and demonstrates the serious, long-term effects of Covid-1 of on the lungs and heart. He is relieved to hear that more than half of the patients in this study Their lungs and heart were damaged 12 weeks after discharge, and about 40% were still suffering from respiratory-like symptoms, ”Trusters said. “Al Chikhni’s research complements this information and shows how important it is for patients to begin pulmonary rehabilitation as soon as they become physically fit.”
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