Skip to main content

Long COVID: The Silent Disease

Written by tourist_yp6g7u on . Posted in Blog.

Long COVID: The Silent Disease

As we near the third full year of living with COVID-19, we continue to learn more about the disease but struggle to understand its long-term impacts. New data has shown that of all U.S. adults reporting a COVID-19 infection, 1-in-5 are experiencing “Long-COVID.” 

Globally, this ratio is higher. Long COVID involves biological and longer term physical and social repercussions that affect everyday life. These repercussions are felt more gravely amongst communities of color where COVID-19 has had, and continues to have, disproportionate adverse impacts. Given the rising reports of Long COVID, its long term effect on daily life, and the detrimental impact among racially and socially marginalized communities, it’s becoming ever more important to understand its symptoms, treatments, and above all, prevention.

The Census Bureau’s 2022 Household Pulse Survey estimated that of the 16 million working age (18-65 years) Americans with Long COVID, 2-4 million would be out of work due to Long COVID. The cost of these lost wages could amount to approximately $170 billion a year. 

Americans who are working at the front lines, in part time or low-wage jobs, or simply paycheck to paycheck can ill-afford to reduce their work hours to recover from Long COVID. This means that most affected by Long COVID have to either bear its symptoms with little flexibility or time-off to recover, or incur reduced wages which contributes to economic insecurity. 

According to the CDC, Long COVID is a condition some individuals experience after having been infected by COVID-19. Long-term effects range from fatigue to respiratory difficulties. Long COVID’s persistent symptoms signify an immune response that goes into overdrive during COVID-19. These symptoms manifest due to internal inflammation and persistence of the COVID-19 virus in the body. 

Long COVID symptoms vary in range of severity, but anyone is susceptible to it. Jamie Durchame, a health correspondent with Time magazine, told the AmNews, “You can get Long COVID if you had a very mild case, if you’re vaccinated, if you’re young and healthy. There are even some people who had asymptomatic cases of COVID-19 and then developed symptoms after that that are now diagnosed as Long COVID. So it really can affect anyone, which I think is one of the scarier parts of it.” 

The following symptoms have been reported: 

  • Fatigue 
  • Difficulty concentrating and recalling memories (also known as “brain fog.”)
  • Shortness of breath
  • Muscle aches and Headaches
  • High temperatures (fevers)
  • Cough
  • Sore throat

As each infected person has reported differing symptoms from COVID-19, each individual afflicted by Long COVID may report differing symptoms as well. Peter Christopher, founder of the Washington Heights Long Covid Community Center, who has Long COVID, told the AmNews, “So what long COVID in a nutshell is like; it feels like something is sucking the life force out of you, like sucking the energy out of you…that sucking becomes just like a huge vacuum and you’re just depleted. So that’s kind of what it feels like. And it’s very depressing because when you look around at the world, it’s like everybody else is still living life and you become a shadow. And so you feel like a lot. You feel alone… It’s scary. And you feel you don’t feel like you anymore.” 

The Washington Heights Long Covid Community Center is a developing center based in Upper Manhattan that hopes to provide multidimensional health care for those affected by Long COVID, ranging from access to doctors, to holistic community resources. 

Dr. Jason Maley, a pulmonary and critical care doctor at Harvard Medical School, told the AmNews that for years there have been reported syndromes similar to Long COVID that manifest after viral infections have occurred. “They’ve been described going back into the 19th century and there’s been some research around what you might call post acute viral syndromes, people who have symptoms after known infections either from viruses or from other types of infections and that included people who had severe fatigue, shortness of breath, this cognitive impairment that’s sometimes called brain fog and other unexplained symptoms.”

Both COVID-19 and  Long COVID are novel, which means that these symptoms and their long term manifestation may vary. Given that many of these symptoms are wide ranging and associated with other comorbidities, meaning that more than one disease is occurring simultaneously in the body, diagnosis of Long COVID is challenging. 

Dr. Mady Hornig, an expert in the field of Long COVID and a professor at Columbia University, [full disclosure: the author was a graduate student at the Columbia Mailman School of Public Health, however Dr. Hornig was not one of the author’s instructors] states that given the novelty of the disease and that there are no definite diagnostic tools for Long COVID, it is difficult to diagnose and to treat effectively. 

“Symptoms can often be [dismissed or ignored] by docs. Docs look into their tool kits and they don’t have the tools to diagnose, and they don’t have the tools to manage or address the disorder even if they were to diagnose it,” Dr. Horning said.

While Long COVID may not be immediately life threatening, Dr. Maley tells the AmNews that it can have a significant impact. “It’s certainly very serious and it’s affecting people in tremendous ways in terms of their ability to function day-to-day and their quality of life and it’s causing really debilitating symptoms.” 

Given its lasting impact, it’s important to seek treatment. 

Long COVID resources

Long COVID may develop regardless of the severity of COVID-19; some who have had an asymptomatic infection have reported Long COVID symptoms. Those reporting more severe COVID-19 symptoms are often those who are not fully vaccinated and tend to report more and worse Long COVID symptoms. Because of this, vaccination against the virus may prevent Long COVID, given that those who have been vaccinated are less likely to experience severe or fatal symptoms from COVID-19, as well as Long COVID, than those who are unvaccinated. 

Jamie Durchame tells the AmNews that “Your risk is higher if you have a severe case… And then some underlying conditions have also been linked to the risk of Long COVID, like asthma, other respiratory conditions.”

Given that the severity of COVID-19 appears to be linked at least in part to your vaccination status (full dose and boosters), studies also indicate that those who have received the COVID-19 vaccine are less likely to develop Long COVID. Dr. Maley says that the most common way to prevent COVID-19 and its potential longterm effects is to be fully vaccinated and boosted. To be fully vaccinated and boosted:

  • You must have completed the COVID-19 vaccine primary series (i.e.: if you have received the Pfizer vaccine, these were 2 doses, spaced approximately 1 month apart). 
  • You must have received the most recent booster dose recommended for you by the CDC. 

While there are many unknowns about Long COVID, we have learned that there are many socioeconomic repercussions in addition to the health risks. Long COVID has effects including cognitive impairment, fatigue, and fever, to name a few, and such effects can deter productivity and long term wellbeing. 

Jamie Durchame tells us that “throughout the pandemic, people of color and people at lower socio-demographic classes have been more likely to get infected by the virus that causes COVID. And if you have COVID, that is the single biggest risk factor for developing Long COVID. So it stands to reason that people in those groups would also have a higher risk, but I don’t know that that’s like a biological risk factor, so much so as a societal one.”

For historically marginalized communities, gaining holistic resources (i.e.: nutritional aid, mental healthcare, etc.) is pertinent to addressing Long COVID. The denial of these resources to said communities only exacerbates public health, making one more vulnerable to the adverse symptoms of COVID-19 and Long COVID. 

As doctors and public health experts develop programs to tackle Long COVID, especially amongst communities who experience healthcare access disparities, advocates are asking them to also consider holistic and socioeconomic support. 

If you are experiencing any symptoms that may indicate Long COVID, please contact your healthcare provider. 

For additional resources around COVID-19-19 please visit www1.nyc.gov/site/coronavirus/index.page or call 311. New Yorkers can find locations of where to pick up free rapid tests by calling 311 or by visiting: www.nychealthandhospitals.org/COVID-19-19-testing-sites/ and can schedule an at-home test by calling 929-298-9400 between 9 a.m. and 7 p.m. seven days a week.

COVID-19-19 testing and vaccination resources can also be accessed on the AmNews COVID-19-19 page: www.amsterdamnews.com/COVID-19/ 

The post Long COVID: The Silent Disease appeared first on New York Amsterdam News.

* This article was originally published here