lingering effects
of covid-19 can do damage to multiple organs in young,
healthy
individuals
months after infection, a finding that has researchers scrambling to paint a fuller picture of the virus as it continues to spread worldwide.
there’s no short answer
as
to why some previously healthy adults suffer from “long covid” after contracting the virus. but the enduring condition — typified by feelings of brain fog, breathlessness and pain — can wreak havoc on the body,
according to a study published by the bmj
. the preliminary findings
, which has not yet been peer-reviewed,
come from the
coverscan
study, a network of 40 specialized clinics assembled by the u
.
k
.
’s national health service to gather more information on the organ health of 500 low-risk patients that have been living with covid-19.
early results from the first 200 patients to submit to a series of blood tests, mri scans and questionnaires show that almost 70 per cent of participants suffered damage to one or more organs, including the lungs, heart, liver and pancreas, four months after infection,
according to the guardian
.
“the good news is that the impairment is mild but
,
even with a conservative lens
,
there is some impairment and in 25
per cent
of people it affects two or more organs,” said
amitava
banerjee, a cardiologist and associate professor at university college london. “this is of interest because we need to know if (the impairments) continue or improve — or if there is a subgroup of people who could get worse.”