Yahoo Finance 20% of coronavirus sufferers may develop long COVID, figures suggest
A fifth of people who have had coronavirus go on to suffer from long COVID, according to newly released estimates.
Overall, around 186,000 people in private households in England in the week beginning 22 November were living with COVID-19 symptoms that had persisted for between five and 12 weeks, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) said.
When looking at symptoms among people five weeks after testing positive for COVID, the ONS estimated that 11.5% of respondents were still experiencing fatigue, 11.4% had a cough and 10.1% had a headache.
Some 8.2% were still experiencing a loss of taste, while 7.9% still had a loss of smell.
All estimates are based on responses collected as part of the ONS COVID-19 infection survey, which tests thousands of people for coronavirus whether or not they have symptoms.
The data, which does not include people staying in hospitals, care homes or other institutions, also found that around 10% of respondents testing positive for COVID-19 exhibit symptoms for a period of 12 weeks or longer.
Watch: Sufferers battle to shake of long COVID
The ONS is also investigating COVID-19 complications by looking at GP records, hospital data, deaths and testing figures.
It analysed the healthcare records of patients in hospital with COVID-19 until the end of August and compares their complication rate to the end of September with people in hospital but not with the disease.
The results suggest that patients in hospital with coronavirus have higher rates of metabolic, cardiovascular, kidney and liver disease compared to those without.
Higher rates of diabetes and cardiovascular disease were particularly notable, the ONS said.
It added: “While these results do not confirm the presence of a causal relationship between COVID-19 hospitalisation and subsequent adverse health events, they are suggestive of a statistical association that warrants further investigation.”
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What are the symptoms of long COVID?
“Long COVID” is a term that refers to those people for whom the symptoms of coronavirus continue after the initial two-week period detailed by the World Health Organization.
Those who suffer from coronavirus symptoms after that are sometimes known as “COVID long-haulers”.
In August, a cross-party group of MPs identified 16 symptoms of long COVID after examining submissions from patients.
They are:
Exhaustion
Vomiting
Diarrhoea
High temperature
Hair loss
Chest pain
Hallucinations
Lasting breathing problems
Purple toes
Chills
Disorientation
Muscle/body ache
Insomnia
Arrhythmia (a problem with the rate or rhythm of the heartbeat)
Tachycardia (where the heart beats more than 100 times per minute)
Cognitive problems – memory loss, confusion
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