Long-COVID: An evolving problem with an extensive impact

Persistence of symptoms or development of new symptoms relating to SARS-CoV-2 infection late in the course of COVID-19 is an increasingly recognised problem facing the globally infected population and its health systems. 'Long-COVID' or 'COVID long-haulers' generally describes th...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:South African medical journal = Suid-Afrikaanse tydskrif vir geneeskunde Vol. 111; no. 1; p. 10
Main Authors: Mendelson, M, Nel, J, Blumberg, L, Madhi, S A, Dryden, M, Stevens, W, Venter, F W D
Format: Journal Article
Language:English
Published: South Africa 23.11.2020
Subjects:
Age Factors
Anosmia - physiopathology
Cognitive Dysfunction - physiopathology
Comorbidity
COVID-19 - complications
COVID-19 - epidemiology
COVID-19 - physiopathology
COVID-19 - therapy
Dyspnea - physiopathology
Fatigue - physiopathology
Headache - physiopathology
Health Planning
Humans
Obesity - epidemiology
Physical and Rehabilitation Medicine
Primary Health Care
Recovery of Function
Risk Assessment
SARS-CoV-2
Severity of Illness Index
Sex Factors
South Africa
Time Factors
South Africa
ISSN:2078-5135, 2078-5135
Online Access:Get more information
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Summary:Persistence of symptoms or development of new symptoms relating to SARS-CoV-2 infection late in the course of COVID-19 is an increasingly recognised problem facing the globally infected population and its health systems. 'Long-COVID' or 'COVID long-haulers' generally describes those persons with COVID-19 who experience symptoms for >28 days after diagnosis, whether laboratory confirmed or clinical. Symptoms are as markedly heterogeneous as seen in acute COVID-19 and may be constant, fluctuate, or appear and be replaced by symptoms relating to other systems with varying frequency. Such multisystem involvement requires a holistic approach to management of long-COVID, and descriptions of cohorts from low- and middle-income countries are eagerly awaited. Although many persons with long-COVID will be managed in primary care, others will require greater input from rehabilitation medicine experts. For both eventualities, planning is urgently required to ensure that the South African public health service is ready and able to respond.
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ISSN:2078-5135
2078-5135
DOI:10.7196/SAMJ.2020.v111i11.15433