A Swiss study has found that a quarter of all COVID-19 patients go on to suffer long-term consequences.
Researchers from the University of Zurich in Switzerland discovered that 25 percent of people infected with corona are facing issues such as tiredness, shortness of breath and even psychological problems several months after their seeming recovery.
The researchers explained: “Our study shows that a large proportion of those infected can develop a form of post-COVID syndrome.”
This means that despite defeating the initial disease they are still struggling with the long-term consequences.
This condition has been named ‘Long COVID’ and is also called Post-Acute Sequelae of SARS-CoV-2 infection (PASC), chronic COVID syndrome (CCS), and long-haul COVID. Sufferers of the lingering illness are sometimes called ‘long haulers’.
According to local media, the results of the study are worrying as 25 percent of participants stated that they are still feeling symptoms six to eight months after they were first infected.
However, researchers pointed out that not all of the problems observed by the study are necessarily due to COVID-19 infections.
Dr. Milo Puhan, director of epidemiology and public health at the University of Zurich, said: “A total of about two to three percent are expected to have serious long-term medical problems, but that doesn’t mean we should neglect the rest. The others are not doing well either.”
The epidemiologist is convinced that creation of contact points for long haulers is “very important”.
The 431 participants of the study all came from the canton of Zurich where they tested positive before the second wave. Around 1.5 million people have been infected in Switzerland so far.
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Story By: Georgina Jadikovska, Sub-Editor: Marija Stojkoska, Agency: Newsflash
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