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“I have really, really serious anxiety, much worse than ever in my life,” says Dunlop. “The anxiety I feel now is unlike any kind of anxiety I have ever felt.” From the moment she wakes up until the moment she goes to bed at night, Dunlop’s mind races with questions like: When will I fully recover? and Do I have undetected heart damage?
It doesn’t help that Dunlop feels short of breath and extremely tired after her exercises. “Not being able to exercise is probably the hardest part for me because intense exercise is my way of controlling my anxiety. Without being able to do that, that level of control was gone, so that was a struggle for me too, ”says Dunlop. Now she practices yoga instead and it helps moderate some of her anxiety.
Then there is the monetary stress. Chronic illnesses can drain your finances from medical bills and reduce your pay when you are absent from work. The Mount Sinai program requires daily rehabilitation work and it is not known if anyone will improve in three months, six months or more. “We have conversations with the social security administration because it’s a full-time job for people,” says Dr Putrino.
The fact that insurance approval is often required to help pay for medical treatment can create an impossible financial situation for people with long-haul COVID-19. About 28.5 million people in the United States did not have insurance in 2017, according to a 2018 report from the US Census Bureau. This same report showed that about 10.6% of blacks and 16.1% of Hispanics did not have health insurance in 2017. This lack of insurance can create tremendous financial stress for people who fall ill in the country. some of the communities most affected by the virus. .
To make the insurance situation even more complicated, some people with long-haul coronavirus have never received a definitive positive diagnosis. At the start of the pandemic in particular, testing for coronaviruses was limited across the country. Some people who thought they had COVID-19 just couldn’t get confirmation. So what happens to people who cannot prove they have the coronavirus but believe they are dealing with the consequences?
“We work around the clock to defend the fact that you cannot deny someone access to care based on the status of the test. The World Health Organization has published guidelines for a presumptive positive diagnosis based on symptoms, so we are following those guidelines, ”says Dr Putrino.
What’s next for long haul
It is too early to know if anyone with post-acute COVID-19 syndrome will make a full recovery. It’s only been about a year since medical experts in the United States have been treating patients with COVID-19; they had even less time to understand what post-acute COVID syndrome is, what causes it and how to treat it effectively, says Dr Putrino. “We still don’t have a good answer if this is something people will have to be vigilant about for the rest of their lives,” he says.
But he is encouraged by the success of his patients. “I wouldn’t say at this point that we have someone saying ‘I’m 100% where I was before COVID-19’, but we are seeing people running on treadmills again and people who can exercise at a fairly heavy level without being overwhelmed for two to three days afterwards, ”says Dr. Putrino. That being said, some patients do have setbacks, so it’s impossible to say if any noticeable improvements will last.
Dr Bunnell’s sentiments are similar: “I don’t have exact numbers on the recovery trajectory yet, but anecdotally most of our patients are making improvements, and I would say after about three months patients who were not in intensive care much better. “
As more people contract COVID-19 and the number of people with post-acute COVID-19 syndrome increases, our knowledge about the disease – and the people it affects – will increase. , says Dr Putrino. A CDC-funded national study called INSPIRE will study the long-term outcomes of the novel coronavirus in patients. The US Department of Veterans Affairs will study the effects of COVID-19 on 9,000 veterans with the disease.
For now, everyone must remain vigilant to protect themselves against the coronavirus. It’s just another great reason (on an already long list) to follow local health department recommendations, social distancing, and wearing masks. “There are all these young people across the country who are thinking, ‘It doesn’t matter if I get COVID-19; I am young and healthy, ”says Dr Putrino. You may have a lower risk of death, but you are susceptible to this new, life-changing condition. “We still cannot determine who is going to have post-acute COVID-19 syndrome and who does not,” says Dr Putrino.
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