COVID | 37% of people have developed symptoms six months after contracting virus: Study

Researchers from Oxford University have discovered In a recent study that between the period of three and six months after already being diagnosed with COVID, the one-third proportion of those who contracted the COVID infections was still having some symptoms. Researchers have been learning more about the 'long Covid'. In several instances, patients appeared to be recovering but only to discover that weeks later they were suffering from some new symptoms. 

The current study examined all individuals with a Covid identification, irrespective of whether they identified as having long COVID, or they persisted to have one or more COVID symptoms in the six months following their diagnosis. The researchers also discovered that the sorts of symptoms patients had varied substantially based on their age, gender, and the intensity of their illness at the time.  

37% of Covid patients showed at least one of the nine symptoms

The study examined electronic health information from over 274,000 COVID patients in the United States during a six-month timeframe and compared it against roughly 114,000 persons diagnosed with influenza during the same time period. During the research, they got 9 possible symptoms of long COVID.  They even discovered that between three to the six-month time period following diagnosis, 37% of Covid patients showed at least one of the nine possible symptoms of long COVID. This was 1.5 times more than the number of those who had flu-like symptoms. 

Abnormal breathing, stomach complaints, chest/throat discomfort, cognitive difficulties, weariness, headache, muscular pain, other pain, and anxiety/depression were among the symptoms that the researchers investigated. It was prevalent that 15% of patients were experiencing anxiety/depression in three to six-month periods. The researchers also found that all forms of pain and discomfort were the most frequent enduring symptom. 

The researchers also examined two time periods such as from one day to 180 days that covered the acute stage, and the other was from day 90 to just 180. They discovered that pain was much more likely to be noticed in the later stage of time, indicating that pain may have begun following patients thought they had healed. Headache and muscular pain were more common in women and younger persons, whereas stomach symptoms and anxiety/depression were more prevalent in females. Men were more likely than women to have respiratory problems and mental impairment. 

As per the Quartz website, the study's depiction is incomplete as it only included individuals who have reported the prevailing symptoms, not those who did not have. It only included those who had a Covid or influenza diagnosis, leaving out others who went undiagnosed or did not receive therapy. 

However, as this can be considered as one of the biggest comparative studies on long Covid till now, it indicates that a substantial percentage of people who are attempting to have their normal life back after the recovery will have health problems to address, although, they do not even recognise themselves as having long Covid. 

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