A New Scientist article covered 'long covid'
It seems that 11% of people who were infected with the original Delta variants of Covid-19 will suffer from long covid and 4.5% of those infected with the omicron variant will get long covid.
You are more likely to suffer if you are a woman or have a pre-existing condition such as asthma or rheumatoid arthritis.
Long covid symptoms vary, any of the following may apply:
- extreme tiredness (fatigue)
- feeling short of breath
- problems with your memory and concentration ("brain fog")
- heart palpitations
- dizziness
- joint pain and muscle aches
- loss of smell
- chest pain or tightness
- difficulty sleeping (insomnia)
- pins and needles
- depression and anxiety
- tinnitus, earaches
- feeling sick, diarrhoea, stomach aches, loss of appetite
- cough, headaches, sore throat, changes to sense of smell or taste
- rashes
Medical researchers are still uncertain about what causes long covid there are some who believe it is the effect of micro-clots in the blood, others think this is unlikely. My own non-medically qualified opinion, drawn from the observation that the symptoms of covid-19 and long covid are remarkably similar to the symptoms of getting old. I suggest that covid-19 causes an influx of senescent cells in the body and where the victim's body fails to clear these (apotosis) then long covid sufferers get the symptoms of old age without the wrinkles.
