Scientists remain in the dark about symptoms of long-term effects of infectious diseases
Long COVID may not be the only long-term respiratory illness, a new study has concluded. Other long-term consequences of respiratory infections go unnoticed, but at the moment the symptoms of such consequences are unknown to scientists.
Photo: Global Look Press
Researchers from Queen Mary University of London have found that COVID may not be the only respiratory disease with long-term consequences, and several other diseases are also showing signs of long-term consequences, writes the Jerusalem Post.< /p>
A new study published in the peer-reviewed medical journal Lancet found that several other respiratory infections have similar long-term consequences.
Scientists were prompted to begin this study after numerous reports of «long COVID» were confirmed earlier in the study. this year, they hope the study will show that long-term effects exist for many other infections, and that more research will be conducted on these effects.
The study confirmed that those who had previously been infected with COVID-19 were more likely to experience a range of symptoms, such as «gastrointestinal, neurological, musculoskeletal and cardiopulmonary problems» and that these symptoms, are likely to be severe.
Those who had “long COVID” were more likely to experience symptoms such as problems with taste or smell, as well as dizziness, the Jerusalem Post writes.
Severe COVID-19 infection was more likely to result in severe long-term COVID symptoms and an even greater reduction in quality of life.
The researchers also noted that the more severe the long-term symptoms, the more likely someone was to report long COVID, which led them to question whether long-term COVID symptoms were actually being underreported.
The findings also led them to believe that other long-term effects of respiratory infections were also going undetected, but the researchers added that the symptoms of such effects are unknown at this time.
The largest discrepancy in symptoms between long-term COVID and other long-term respiratory infections was related to memory loss, hair loss, and problems with taste and smell.
< p>The researchers hope that these data will be used to improve post-infection care for patients and allow health care workers to better understand the long-term consequences of respiratory infections.