COVID-19 PATIENTS SUFFERING AFTEREFFECTS

[Anchor Lead]

Despite measures aimed at returning to normal life as COVID-19 cases decline, there are people who are unable to enjoy normalcy as they did before the pandemic. They are patients of so-called “long Covid” who struggle with aftereffects.

[Pkg]

A post-Covid syndrome clinic which recently opened at a local hospital. Inquiries pour in from people who say related symptoms continue even several weeks after the infection. A patient in her 60s who tested positive a month ago still coughs and reports breathing difficulties. She is nervous as to whether she can return to normal life.

[Soundbite] Patient Battling After-effects(Age 66) : "When I continue talking, I cough up white phlegm."

[Soundbite] Patient Battling After-effects(Age 66) : "I have no energy. I’m depressed and have no motivation. It feels like the symptoms are never-ending and I’m being sucked into a quagmire."

After-effects known as long Covid are known to cover a range of symptoms including coughing, fatigue, impairment to sense of smell and taste, memory disorder and depression. In one study, over six out of ten patients complained of suffering from more than 3 symptoms at a time. Coughing was the most common followed by lethargy. Difficulty with breathing and digestive troubles are also reported. There are twice as many women than men who battle long Covid and people 60 and older account for 37%. Most after-effects will eventually go away but if left unchecked, they could become a chronic condition.

[Soundbite] Prof. Chung Young-hee(Myongji Hospital Dept. of Neurology) : "Statistics show about 1% of our patients have lingering pneumonia. For the rest, we offer drug therapy to treat the individual symptoms of each patient."

Currently, there are no unified diagnostic standard or approved treatment for long Covid. It’s necessary to establish relevant guidelines through systematic research to enable a rules-based management of Covid after-effects.