The distant effects of sars-CoV-2 virus infection are certainly one of the emerging health problems. It is not yet known why in some people the impact of the virus on the organism does not end with the negativization of the infection, the mechanisms that generate the picture are not completely known.
Certainly there are many people who, at all ages, experience physical and psychological symptoms related to the outcomes of acute infection. Even for Queen Elizabeth II we talk about long-Covidshe herself declared that she felt “very tired and fatigued”, as happens for many people, more or less 15% of those recovered at least according to the data of an analysis conducted in various Italian regions by the Federation of hospital internists (Fadoi ).
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Asthenia, heart and nervous system problems
The long-Covid it impacts both the body and the psyche and for this reason, also thanks to the stresses of the historical moment we are experiencing, it risks becoming a real obstacle on the path to well-being for many people. At all ages and, in some cases, even without a direct correlation with the severity of the Covid-19 picture, with the appearance of distant disorders even in those who have had mild symptoms related to the replication of the virus. But when it comes to long-Covid?
In general terms we mean a clinical condition characterized by heterogeneous signs and symptoms that remain or develop four weeks after acute SARS-CoV-2 infection. Clinical manifestations are highly variable and today there is no unanimous consensus on their characteristics, although it is possible to distinguish general manifestations such as astheniamyalgia, arthralgia, general weakness and pictures related to the well-being of a single organ such as difficulty in breathing normally, tachycardia, unexplained headaches and perhaps even signs of gastroesophageal reflux.
Always referring to the “snapshot” taken by the Fadoi experts, one realizes that it is almost always an unspeakable weariness, which limits your chances of doing what you did before the infection. This problem, albeit with varying degrees, would be present in almost four out of five people. Even a sort of difficulty in common brain activities, in terms of responsiveness and the ability to follow a path for a long time, appears in some people, in the form of a kind of “fog” that seems to obscure the normal functioning of the nervous system.
Again: for many, more or less six out of ten subjects, difficulty in breathing normally, which manifest themselves with difficulty and easy fatigue. Only in the most serious cases does even a minimum physical effort enable you to breathe faster to compensate for the lack of oxygen. Heart chapter: there are many observations that say how the heart and the vessels of those who have had Covid-19 present characteristics of greater risk.
The latest Swedish analysis appeared on British Medical Journal in this context it shows that in the first month after the picture there is an increase of about five times the risk of venous thrombosis deep and a 30-fold increase in the risk of pulmonary embolism and almost double the incidence of haemorrhages. Then, gradually, the risk goes down. But it remains even after months, albeit less significant.
Why is the long-Covid born
There is still a lack of information to fully explain the possible origin of these and many other disorders related to this particular condition, even if it often goes back to the damage caused by the viral infection and by the body’s defensive response on specific systems, such as the respiratory and respiratory systems. cardiovascular. In any case, the presence of a hyper-inflammatory state persistent or inadequate antibody response, which could contribute to generating the situation. In short, among the things that are not known, there is no certainty that the post-Covid syndrome depends directly on the virus or is rather caused above all by the stress and trauma associated with the infection. however, we know that the virus has the endothelium of blood vessels as one of its targets.
Again: it is thought that, among other factors, a sort of autoimmune reaction may occur, with the virus which in practice induces an “error” on the part of the body’s defensive system, leading it to the point of producing autoantibodies, which they do not recognize as “Own” tissues of the body which can then be attacked, triggering the symptoms. Certainly you know that the long-Covid it not only affects the elderly, but can also affect young people and children, regardless of the severity of the symptoms of the first infection.
Just think in this sense of a study some time ago by a research group of the Department of Women’s and Child Health and of Public Health of the A. Gemelli IRCCS University Hospital Foundation in Rome: in about 130 children diagnosed with Covid- 19, just under one in three had a disorder four months after infection, and one in five had three or more symptoms related to the picture, including joint pain, sleep disturbance, and headache.
In any case, this clinical picture characterized by different signs and symptoms, which they are maintained over time even months after the swab has become negative and the infection has officially ended, it tends to be preferred in particular up to the age of 60, especially women and more generally overweight and obese people. But as mentioned, it can occur at all ages.
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