A new British study shows that organ damage in long-term Covid-19 patients persists in 59% of cases after one year, even in those who were not seriously ill in the first place.

The researchers, led by Professor Amitava Banerjee of the University College London (UCL) Institute of Health Informatics, who made the relevant publication in the journal of the British Royal Society of Medicine “Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine”, analyzed data on 536 patients.

Of these, only 13% had been hospitalized after the initial diagnosis of the coronavirus. 331 (62%) had problems in various organs six months after the initial diagnosis of Covid-19.

Patients with long-term Covid-19 (who had symptoms such as severe shortness of breath, cognitive dysfunction and generally poor quality of life) were followed for another six months, i.e. 12 months in depth. It was found that 29% had damage to multiple organs and reduced functionality, while 59% had a problem in one organ.

Persistent symptoms were more common at younger ages and in women.

A reduction in symptoms was recorded between six months and 12 months after the initial infection: in severe dyspnea from 38% to 30% of patients, in cognitive dysfunction from 48% to 38%, while in poor quality of life due to health from 57% to 45%.

“Several studies have confirmed the persistence of symptoms in people with prolonged Covid-19 for up to a year. Our study now adds that three out of five people with long-term Covid-19 have damage to at least one organ and one out of four to two or more organs and even in some cases without symptoms,” said Dr Banerjee.

Another US study, led by Dr Roy Perlis of Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston, which looked at around 15,000 people with a previous coronavirus infection, found that those with prolonged Covid-19 or post-Covid syndrome were less likely to work with full-time employment and are more likely to be unemployed, especially if they have persistent symptoms of cognitive impairment.