Amy Watson has had a chronic fever for 344 days.
Nearly a year after she was diagnosed with COVID-19, the Portland, Oregon professor still suffers from ongoing symptoms.
Aside from the fever, Watson told Insider he still experiences chronic fatigue, “brain fog,” intense migraines, gastrointestinal problems, and severe body aches.
The 47-year-old, who had no underlying health status before catching the virus, has also developed tachycardia and says that every time she goes under the shower her heart rate exceeds 100 beats per minute.
“It’s really a challenge. I don’t want people to have to know from personal experience what this is like,” Watson told Insider.
Watson has been part of a growing group of COVID victims for a long time, or the so-called “long carriers,” whose bodies have been weakened by a virus of which little is still known.
But now, post-recovery clinics specifically catered for long-haul carriers are opening up across the country and offering people like Watson some much-needed hope.
Post-COVID clinics offer a “centralized” way to access the care of long-distance carriers
According to a CDC study published in the summer, about 1 in 3 people with COVID-19 will experience symptoms that last longer than the typical two weeks.
Symptoms, which can range from ongoing coughing to scarred lungs, affect not only people who had to be hospitalized with COVID-19, but also those with milder cases.
Post-COVID care centers aim to bring together a team of experts from a wide range of specialties to address all the issues facing long-haul carriers, based on the latest knowledge of the disease. .
One of the first clinics of this type was Mount Sinai Hospital in New York. It has served 1,500 people since it opened in May.
Dr Ruwanthi Titao, a cardiologist working at the clinic, told Insider: “The purpose of the center was to fill this gap with patients seeking care, who feel frustrated, worried and worried about not having access to proper care. the community.
“And that was a good centralized way to get them access to care, to document their symptoms so that we can start recognizing patterns in terms of disease, and then refer them to the right specialist to get them. appropriate therapy “. added.
Patients usually have a one-hour admission appointment to review their medical history before looking at current coronavirus-induced symptoms.
“From now on, the COVID post office will make the right referrals. So, for example, it would be about cardiology, neurology, rehabilitation medicine or psychiatry,” Dr. Titano said.
But treating people with multiple (and often severe) symptoms is a challenge for a disease that does not yet have long-term research.
Dr. Greg Vanichkachorn, medical director of Mayo Clinic’s covid activity rehabilitation program (CARP) in Rochester, Minnesota, told Insider that his center is taking a “slow, steady” approach based on treatments. used before the coronavirus pandemic.
“You know, this is not the first outbreak of coronavirus. We’ve had SARS and MERS, for example, and we already have some research from that time that definitely shows that there was a postviral syndrome similar to this one as well.” He said.
“What we have emphasized with our patients is to help them adapt and develop what is called a‘ Stick ’therapy program, where they slowly, with practical help, participate in rehabilitation,” continued Dr. Vanichkachorn.
“It’s a slow, consistent activity with small gains.”
Therapy often incorporates simple measures, such as encouraging patients to increase fluid and salt intake or giving them compression socks to help blood flow.
“And then, if we really need it, we can also use medications to help with the symptoms, either to raise blood pressure if we need to or help with things like fast heart rate,” added Dr. Vanichkachorn.
Dr. Titano, of Mount Sinai, confirmed that his recovery clinic was taking a similar approach.
“We are repairers and healers, we want to have a clear diagnosis and we want to fix it. But when there are symptoms of outbreaks or when there are relapses or setbacks, of course, we take it very seriously,” Dr. Titano said.
But while Dr. Titano admits that “it’s been a slow, very slow process of improvement,” she’s still hopeful.
Mental health is also an issue
Clinics, such as Mount Sinai, also offer patients access to social workers or therapists to work through their trauma.
Many long-haul carriers, especially those who were hospitalized, have been left with depression or, in some cases, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
This is the case of Heather-Elizabeth Brown, a 36-year-old corporate coach from Detroit, Michigan, who had to put on a ventilator in April after coronavirus-induced pneumonia caused her lungs to fail.
Brown, who was in a coma for 31 days, said his experience was “traumatic.”
Shortly after doctors told him a ventilator would be the only way to save his life, Brown had to have a “FaceTime family reunion” to make his decision. Her mother had to receive the call from the hospital parking lot.
“I remember I wrote my will on a napkin, put it in one of my boots, and made sure to tell the nurses where it was just in case,” Brown said. “I just didn’t know at the time if I would come out alive.”
Heather-Elizabeth Brown in the hospital. (Heather-Elizabeth Brown)
“I have a very strong faith. I trust God. But it’s one of those things you don’t know. It was just a very big question mark,” he added.
Brown is currently doing therapy along with several treatments.
“I’m lucky that a lot of my care is under one health system. So at least all of my records are in one place,” Brown said.
“But for people who may have other challenges or have different barriers to access, having a center that also offers mental health help is a phenomenal idea. It’s like a one-stop shop,” he added.
Long-haul carriers feel forgotten
Professor Watson said finding treatment for all her ailments has been frustrating and she often feels fired by healthcare professionals.
The United States still faces tens of thousands of acute cases of COVID-19 a day and many states are now busy administering vaccines as quickly as possible. This often means that long-haul carriers are sidelined.
“When we go to our appointments, the doctors tell us they don’t feel our symptoms are severe enough and they tell us they won’t waste time with us. And that’s pretty disconcerting as a patient,” Watson continued.
This was part of the reason why Watson started one of Facebook’s largest support groups for long haul carriers.
For Watson, having a program that specifically caters to long-haul carriers would change lives.
“I would personally love to go to one, but unfortunately there aren’t any in my area right now. But that’s definitely something I’m advocating,” he said.
“People just have to understand that we are a little impatient. We would like to improve and get back into our lives and hopefully we don’t have a significant portion of the population disabled by this disease,” he added.
This article was originally published by Business Insider.
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