Thousands could have permanent damage to lungs
TEnS of thousands of coronavirus survivors could be left with permanent lung damage, experts have warned.
nHS England said it was opening specialist rehabilitation hospitals for follow-up care after research suggested one in three hospital patients could suffer irreversible damage or scarring to their lungs.
Guidance issued to GPs and community services also says that up to half of Covid-19 patients treated in intensive care may be left with ‘persistent physical, cognitive and psychological impairments’.
Doctors are particularly concerned about pulmonary fibrosis – an irreversible form of lung damage that can lead to severe shortness of breath, coughing and fatigue.
Research suggests around 30 per cent of survivors of Sars and Mers, previous coronavirus outbreaks, suffered permanent lung disease. Radiologists in the uK who follow up scans of coronavirus patients suggest many have persistent lung damage. Dr Sam Hare, an adviser to the Royal College of Radiologists, told the BBC: ‘Scarring will potentially happen at six to 12 weeks after your infection… your air sacs will get destroyed and distorted, meaning that you cannot consistently breathe as you did before you had the virus.’
He added: ‘In the six-week scans we’re seeing, so far I would say between 20 per cent and 30 per cent of patients who have been in hospital appear to show some early signs of lung scarring.’
Some 3.5 million people in the uK are estimated to have caught coronavirus – and 100,000 patients have needed hospital treatment in England, meaning tens of thousands could face long-term lung damage. nHS England is planning to open a number of rehabilitation centres to help these patients recover.
Meanwhile, a vaccine developed by Imperial College of london researchers has been tested for the first time on a volunteer.
The participant is reported to be in good health with no safety concerns.
A second dose will follow within four weeks. Imperial now joins oxford university in the uK race to find an effective vaccine.
Imperial’s Professor Robin Shattock, who is leading the research, said: ‘We now eagerly await rapid recruitment to the trial so that we can assess both the safety of the vaccine and its ability to produce neutralising antibodies which would indicate an effective response against Covid-19.’
Human trials for oxford’s ChAdox1 vaccine began in April, involving more than 1,000 participants.
However, low transmission rates in the uK thanks to lockdown may mean it takes a long time to prove the effectiveness of any jab, said Professor Sarah Gilbert, who is working on the oxford trial.