What do we know about Long Covid, the long-term effects of the Coronavirus
The appeal of Marta, one of the founders of the Long Covid Italia Association: “Since I got sick my life has changed. I spent up to 20 thousand euros for all the exams. To the authorities I say: help these patients who really risk being disabled for life and never recovering their health ”.
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What do we know about Long Covid, the long-term effects of the Coronavirus
“Since March 2020, my life has changed since I got sick.”
Marta Experts is one of the Italian sufferers of Long Covidthe clinical syndrome characterized by the presence of certain symptoms related to SARS-CoV-2 infection, which onset or persist even for weeks or months after healing dal virus.
A Fanpage.it he recounted the beginning of the disease, which began during the first wave, and its consequences.
“Those who are allergic are more at risk for Long Covid,” Rescigno (Humanitas) tells Fanpage.it
“My illness started out as a simple one cold, a strong influence – said Marta, one of the founders ofLong Covid Italy association -. It was said that young people, and especially women, had very little risk of developing a severe form. In the fourth week I had chest pains very strong, like a feeling of knives they pierced me and I had a strong difficulty in breathing. For a year I have had a lot of symptoms that have also evolved over time “.
Even today Marta explained that she was “strong tachycardias, difficulty walking and climbing stairs. I suffer from headache who found relief only with oxygen therapy. THE hair keep falling, I have one fever persistent, in addition to gods micro clots and pulmonary micro embolisms. That in itself would be enough to put you on the ground. “
And these are not the only problems. And they concern the economic sphere. In 2021 with the dl Sostegni bis 50 million euros have been allocated to exempt from the ticket those who have been hospitalized for Covid and suffer from Long Covid.
To date, according to what he learns Fanpage.it from sources of the Ministry of Health, there is no news about a possible expansion of the audience and available resources. But on the agenda of the new government one of the first points should be precisely the evaluation of an extension of the exemption for visits and examinations to patients who have not ended up in hospital. Even if none of the parties seems to deal with the issue in this one election campaign.
“Money has been set aside for gods follow up for Long Covid patients only hospitalized but who in any case are insufficient to adequately understand and follow the patient for all that we have discovered now – continued Marta -. The number of tests done is enormous and money spent there are so many. I made a calculation, although I did many tests with the National Health System, I am certainly among the 10mila eh 20mil euros spent in the last two years. Even at a professional level, I am losing the ability to support myself and my working role has deteriorated a lot “.
From here, Marta makes a appeal to the authorities, so that they can also study possible therapies.
“I remember that a magical therapy for Long Covid does not exist. For this reason, after two years it is necessary that the Italian health authorities also focus on Research therapies not only at the national level to see how many are affected and how to make the diagnoses. Abroad they are making gods trial but we don’t have complete data yet. But we wonder why in Italy it is not possible to open trials after 2 years on drugs that can help patients recover permanently. But we must also concretize and help these patients who really risk being disabled Lifetime and never to find health again “.
Tosato (Policlinico Gemelli): “There are also exemptions for those who have not been hospitalized”
The Higher Institute of Health recently created a list of centers that deal with Long Covid throughout Italy.
Among these is the Gemelli Polyclinic From Rome, where from April 2020 there is a garrison dedicated to Long Covid.
A Fanpage.it Matteo Tosato, Head of Gemini’s UOS Day Hospital Post-Covid, explained that “the most common symptoms of Long Covid are the fatiguei.e. chronic fatigue, dyspnea, which is shortness of breath especially under exertion, but also the so-called brain fog or brain fog, and then again palpitations, muscle and joint pain. After vaccinations the pneumonia we had at the beginning are less aggressive so the dyspnea is less present “.
Tosato also added that the “path of care in Italy it is, as always, divided from North to South, with very heterogeneous services available. A recent work by the ISS has surveyed about 120 centers that deal with Long Covid, almost all in the North. But even here there are big differences “.
“The fundamental problem on which we are discussing – he continued – is that of identifying which ones are good clinical practices in such a way as to create a path that is no longer left to the single center or specialist. Here at Gemelli, an outpatient program called PAC has been activated, identified for all patients who have had Covid for both hospitalized and non-hospitalized “.
There is also a “package reserved for those who have been hospitalized with the note CV 2123 and is entitled to perform a series of performances in exemption. They are sufficient to the extent that we are in a position to make a first level assessment. It makes no sense to leave an exemption only for those who have been hospitalized because some ailments can also be borne by those who have been at home “, concluded Tosato.