Even one year after their illness, around half of the patients admitted to hospital because of a corona infection still suffer from long-term consequences. That says a new study of the first cases in Wuhan.
The authors of the Chinese study, which appeared in the journal “The Lancet” on Friday, therefore called for better consideration of the long-term effects of the disease. One in three patients is still short of breath after a year.
According to the study, the proportion of people with long-term consequences is even higher in patients who are in an intensive care unit with a severe course of the disease. The researchers used the medical records of nearly 1,300 patients treated at a hospital in the Chinese city of Wuhan between January and May 2020, where the virus was first discovered.
Health systems face new challenges
For the study, data were collected six and twelve months after the end of treatment. According to this, the proportion of patients with at least one remaining symptom or a secondary illness was 68 percent after six months and 49 percent after one year. The proportion of patients who suffered from anxiety and depression rose slightly from 23 to 26 percent.
Despite the long-term effects, the researchers found that a large majority of 88 percent had returned to work a year after their illness. Nevertheless, health systems would have to be prepared to offer long-term support to Covid-19 patients. (SDA)