IN MY VIEW... Lasting damage from any virus must be taken seriously

AS WE learn more about Covid-19, it is becoming abundantly clear that not everyone makes a full recovery.

Some, including those who had an apparently mild infection, suffer from an array of physical and psychological symptoms for weeks and even months.

Symptoms of ‘long Covid’, as it has become known, include severe fatigue, breathlessness, aching muscles and joints, and ‘brain fog’. Eight highly trained doctors recently described the devastating effect it has had on their lives and careers in these very pages.

Such symptoms are, most likely, the result of the virus’s effects on the brain and other parts of the nervous system.

After all, you are your brain. Everything else — arms, legs, heart, lungs — is only an accessory to feed the brain with what it needs to prosper and survive, and the brain can be invaded by the coronavirus.

Other viral illnesses can leave a similar and equally debilitating legacy. One we are all familiar with is shingles, which occurs when the varicella, or chickenpox, virus is reactivated, years or, more usually, decades later. This can lead to lifelong pain, serious depression, and a prolonged period of headaches and fatigue.

Influenza, meanwhile, is notorious for causing major depression — suicide even — in some cases.

But while long Covid may not be exceptional in the world of viruses, that doesn’t mean it should not be taken seriously. It is vital that the planned network of one-stop clinics is set up to provide diagnostic tests and care for all who need them.