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A trauma surgeon says the lungs of recovered COVID-19 patients appear to be much worse than even those of smokers.
Dr Brittany Bankhead-Kendall, assistant professor at Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center, has been treating thousands of people with the disease since the pandemic exploded in March.
She said x-rays from smokers ‘lungs are a bit blurry, but those from coronavirus patients’ lungs are almost completely white – showing intense scarring and a lack of air entering organs.
“I don’t know who needs to hear this, but ‘post-Covid’ lungs seem worse than ANY type of terrible smoker’s lung we’ve ever seen,” Bankhead-Kendall tweeted January 4.
“And they fall apart. And they coagulate. And the breathlessness persists … and again … and so on.
Trauma surgeon in Texas, Dr Brittany Bankhead-Kendall, showed the difference between an x-ray of a smoker (left) and that of a COVID-19 patient (right). The smoker’s x-ray had a bit of blur while the COVID-19 patient’s x-ray appeared almost completely white
The healthy patient’s x-ray had a lot of black space, showing they were able to inhale normal amounts of oxygen (above)
Bankhead-Kendall told CBS DFW that so many health experts have focused on death rates, not the long-term effects of survivors.
“ Everyone is so worried about the mortality and it’s terrible and horrible, ” she said.
“ But the man, and all the survivors and the people that tested positive, that’s – it’s going to be a problem.
The coronavirus often causes complications such as pneumonia, which occurs when the lungs fill with fluid and become inflamed.
When the air sacs fill with fluid, they are unable to absorb as much oxygen, resulting in symptoms such as coughing and shortness of breath.
Studies have also revealed damage to the epithelial cells, which line the airways from the nose to the lungs, of coronavirus patients.
Bankhead-Kendall told CBS DFW that each of his patients who showed symptoms of the virus had a severe x-ray.
Among those who are asymptomatic, between 70 and 80 percent have severe results.
“There are still people who say, ‘I’m fine, I have no problem’ and you take their chest x-ray and they have absolutely a bad chest x-ray,” she said.
To show the difference, Bankhead-Kendall shared with CBS DFW three x-rays: one of a healthy patient, the other of a smoker and the last of a COVID-19 patient.
The x-ray of the healthy patient shows a large amount of dark space, which means that the person is able to inhale a lot of air.
Meanwhile, the smoker’s x-ray shows white lines and haze, indicating inflammation and damage to the walls of the lungs or air sacs.
Lung opacities usually indicate that the lungs are filled with things like fluids or bacteria, as well as dense scarring and damage. Bankhead-Kendall says it has lasting effects
In comparison, the x-ray of the lungs from COVID-19 is almost completely white, known as lung opacities.
Lung opacities are hazy clouds of white that contrast with the darkness of the lungs, usually indicating that the lungs are full of things like fluids, bacteria, or cells of the immune system.
It also means that the patient is not able to absorb as much oxygen as they would normally be with a healthy lung.
“ You will either see a lot of these dense white scars or you will see them all over your lung, ” Bankhead-Kendall told CBS DFW.
“ And if you don’t feel any issues now, the fact that it’s on your chest x-ray certainly indicates that you might have issues later. ”
Some patients have ended up with permanent lung damage or scarring, but it is not clear if this is true for all patients.
Public health experts say if you still experience shortness of breath after recovering from COVID-19, it is important to contact your doctor immediately.
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