BMJ Reports on COVID-19: Researchers from Optum Labs and Harvard T H Chan School of Public Health in the US recorded that those conditions involved many significant organs and systems and mental health complications.
According to a new study published in the BMJ, around one-third of the elderly infected with COVID-19 in 2020 developed one new condition at the minimum that required medical attention after the initial infection.
The study used health insurance plan records in the US to identify 133366 individuals aged 65 or older in 2020 who had been diagnosed with COVID-19 before April 1, 2020.
These individuals were compared with three non-COVID comparison groups from 2020 to 2019 and a group with viral lower respiratory tract illness.
The researchers then recorded any condition that showed no change or new conditions or sequelae starting 21 days after a COVID-19 diagnosis.
The excess risk for conditions triggered by the disease that prolonged over several months based on age, race, sex, and if they were admitted to the hospital for COVID-19 were calculated.
The results showed that among patients diagnosed with COVID-19 in 2020, 32 percent looked for medical attention in the post-acute period for new or persistent conditions. This was 11 percent more than the comparison group of 2020.
COVID-19 patients were at increased risk of developing respiratory failure, fatigue, high blood pressure, and mental health diagnoses compared with the same group.
Impact of the study reports of Covid-19
The study’s authors said that understanding the magnitude of risk for these clinical sequelae may enhance their diagnosis and management of patients with sequelae after acute SARS-CoV-2 infection.
They believe that their results can help key stakeholders anticipate the scale of future health complications and improve the use and allocation of healthcare resources
Similar results were found in the 2019 comparison group, the researchers said.
Although, compared with the group with viral lower respiratory tract illness, only respiratory failure, dementia, and fatigue showed increased risk differences with COVID-19.
Patients admitted to the hospital with COVID-19 had a considerably increased risk for most but not all conditions.
The researchers said that the risk of several conditions was also increased for men. Especially those of the black race and those aged 75 and older.
The cause couldn’t be established since it was an observational study. The researchers acknowledged some limitations, including that some diagnoses may not truly represent a new condition triggered by COVID-19 infection.
However, they warned that with millions infected with COVID-19 worldwide,
“the number of survivors with sequelae after the acute infection will continue to grow.”
Edited By- Subbuthai Padma
Published By- Satheesh Kumar
