Tamil Nadu: Covid complications haunt 4.5% survivors – Times of India

Chennai News
About 1% of people who recover from Covid-19 may require oxygen support intermittently for up to two months, while some suffer from cough, lack of sleep, aches and fatigue for up to six weeks, says a survey done by Chennai’s Government Stanley Medical College to assess sequelae of the viral infection.
At the meeting of medical experts with chief minister Edappadi K Palaniswami on Tuesday, health secretary J Radhakrishnan said the telephonic survey by the department of community medicine, among 1,911 patients who had been out of hospital for more than 45 days, showed 4.5% exhibited symptoms after discharge. The symptoms persisted beyond one month for nearly half of those affected. These symptoms included body pain, fatigue, breathlessness, disturbed sleep and cough.

In emergency rooms across the state, doctors are treating post-Covid patients for clots in blood vessels that require life or limb saving surgeries, besides complications of uncontrolled diabetes and hypertension. So far, more than 5.3lakh people have recovered from Covid in the state including 1.5lakh in Chennai.
Like morbidity and mortality, risk of post-Covid complications is higher with age for patients who were symptomatic and those with pre-existing comorbidity such as diabetes, respiratory disorders, kidney diseases, says Stanley deputy medical superintendent Dr Ganesan. “The risks are also high among patients with severe Covid-19 infection requiring longer hospitalization with or without life support,” he said.
Patients develop fibrosis of the lung — a condition where lung tissues harden – days after they test negative and most other symptoms disappear. While in severe cases patients are put on life support and waitlisted for lung transplant, people with mild to moderate breathing difficulty are asked to stay at home with intermittent oxygen support. “They heal in six to eight weeks. We advise them to do breathing exercises and walk,” said Stanley Hospital pulmonologist Dr Vinod Kumar.
Another common symptom doctors see is fatigue and body pain. While most of these symptoms disappear over time, some require urgent medical attention. For instance, pain in the legs could be symptoms of a clot. Senior vascular surgeons say patients are put on blood thinners to prevent clot yet in some patients uncontrolled diabetes and hypertension trigger complications. Patients with chest discomfort, slur in speech and imbalance in the body should consult a doctor at once.

Source: https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/chennai/tamil-nadu-covid-complications-haunt-4-5-suvivors/articleshow/78420417.cms