Los Angeles — Since so many people have come into contact with a COVID-19 infection, many now view the virus as the common cold or the flu.
New research suggests that this is far from the truth.
With the dread of COVID waning, a parallel pandemic has begun to emerge.
“We’re still learning about the long-term health effects of COVID infection,” said Barbara Ferrer, director of public health for Los Angeles County.
See also | 80% of people with long-term COVID-19 have debilitating conditions: CDC
They’re seeing it more often in younger patients, Dr. Michael Gabriel of the Cleveland Clinic said.
This comes as doctors across the country are dealing with a growing number of patients who cannot clear up their initial COVID symptoms or who have acquired new symptoms that have persisted for at least a month or more. Some cases lasted for two years.
Ferrer said: “The most frequently described symptoms of COVID-19 include fatigue, decreased ability to exercise, breathing problems, brain fog, and loss of taste and smell.
Various studies have found that long-distance COVID, or long-distance syndrome, can infect the entire population.
“It’s more in females than in males,” Gabriel said. “It’s also more common in patients with comorbidities.”
In a study of several thousand veterans, Ferrer said new evidence suggests that frequent COVID infections increase the risk of developing the long-term syndrome.
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“Many of these disorders were serious and life-changing and include strokes, cognitive and memory disturbances, and peripheral nervous system disorders,” she said. “The risk of developing long-term health conditions was three times higher for those who were infected than for those who did not have the infection.”
Avoiding infection is key, and while COVID vaccines and boosters don’t always prevent infection, several studies have found that they can reduce the risk of contracting the COVID virus for a long time.
“Those who had two doses of the vaccine prior to contracting COVID had an approximately 75% lower chance of contracting COVID for a prolonged period,” Ferrer said. “Whereas those who got three doses had an 84% lower chance of getting long-term COVID.”
While we have a lot to learn, Ferrer said vaccination and booster seem to be one of the simplest ways to significantly reduce risk.
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