‘Long COVID’ Victorians surge to seek treatment

Hundreds of Victorians are seeking treatment for strange and debilitating symptoms lingering many months after their COVID-19 diagnosis, including some whose ailments are so severe they are struggling to return to work.

The distressing symptoms

Head of respiratory medicine research at The Alfred hospital in Melbourne, Professor Anne Holland, said the hospital’s post-COVID follow-up clinic was supporting a rising number of people infected in the latest Delta outbreak, some of whom were having to cut back their working hours, or were finding it difficult to return to their studies.

Many were young, otherwise healthy people, who had only minor bouts of the disease, but were reporting symptoms including brain fog, extreme fatigue, chronic pain, shortness of breath, and palpitations more than two months after infection.

Others are experiencing tinnitus (a ringing or buzzing noise in the ears) or recurring pins and needles (a sensation of uncomfortable tingling or prickling), despite having no history of the conditions.

“One of the things that has been much more apparent this year with the Delta outbreak is that symptoms around difficulties with memory and concentration have been very prevalent,” Professor Holland said.

“There are other very distressing symptoms as well, which seem to be quite particular to COVID, like loss of smell or taste. It is having a real impact on the way people live their lives.”

Surge numbers of long COVID

In September, The Alfred’s post-COVID clinic began monitoring another 400 patients, who were still experiencing symptoms of the disease after testing positive to the virus in July.

Many were young people who were infected before being able to be vaccinated. Professor Holland said while about a third might make a full recovery without treatment, the others might require ongoing support from the clinic.

The demand for post-coronavirus care is expected to soar in Victoria in the coming months as the state continues to report the highest numbers of infections in the country.

The number of people who have the post viral condition in Victoria is difficult to quantify because many receive follow-up care through their general practitioners.

Professor Holland said there was an urgent need for more services to help people cope with brain fog, as well as mental health support for people with long COVID, who frequently experienced anxiety, depression and signs of post-traumatic stress.

In Australia, up to 30 per cent of seriously ill COVID-19 patients have reported at least one symptom persisting after six months.

But doctors are increasingly seeing higher numbers of young people, who despite not being severely ill with the virus, struggle to shake off waves of debilitating symptoms.

Research suggests the phenomenon is more common in women, even though men are typically hit harder by acute COVID‑19.

Serious issues behind long COVID

Australian researchers tracking patient recovery are warning that the long-term effects of COVID-19 pose a more severe public health threat than the pandemic’s death toll, foreshadowing a significant surge of people battling lasting illnesses and disabilities.

Carol Hodgson, from Monash University’s School of Public Health, led an Australian-first study of 200 people who were admitted to intensive-care wards with COVID-19.

It found 70 per cent of respondents reported suffering persistent symptoms six months after they were hospitalised.

The most common symptom was shortness of breath, but others included fatigue, headaches, a loss of strength, and a loss of taste or smell.

Research behind the exact mechanisms that trigger long COVID is still emerging, but Professor Hodgson said the virus caused systemic inflammation that could affect a person’s muscles and lead to disruption of multiple organ systems.