LONG-HAULERS AND COVID 19: WHAT’S MILD?

Seriously, I feel as if I’ve written enough about COVID-19. Most of you are probably sick and tired hearing about this topic. However, because this illness is so rampant and because it has claimed the lives of over 110,000 Americans in a very short time, there is a lot more that we simply need to know.

Firstly this virus is very fickle. How it affects individual patients varies greatly. Initially we thought the major cause of death and disability was Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome (ARDS). Then we learned that the ARDS caused from this virus was heterogeneous, and varies from patient to patient. This can undoubtedly affect treatment.

Then we learned that the illness has many cardiac manifestations with presentations that actually simulate an acute heart attack. Next we became aware that this is a disease of hypercoagulability where the tendency for blood clotting is huge. Clots have been found in the lung, the kidneys, the brain, and the carotid arteries. Suddenly we learn that young folks are presenting with acute strokes.

This recent article from The Atlantic gives us a different and scary perspective from survivors of COVID-19 who never required admission to ICU and who never went on a ventilator. These are among cases typically classified as “mild”. However, such folks have wrestled with symptoms that have lasted at least a month, if not two or three.

Yes, such cases may be considered mild when compared to those dying alone in hospitals. However, they have been plagued by extreme fatigue, difficulty with concentration, exercise, and performance of simple tasks. Most are young and were previously considered fit and healthy.

Realizing that this group of patients, known as “long- haulers” may well represent a minority, it nonetheless gives credence that this illness can be manifested in several different ways.

Indeed we will continue to learn more and more as time goes by.

Link to The Atlantic Article “Covid-19 Can Last for Several Months”