Long Covid still hitting patients after two years
Doctor hopeful new treatments on way
A HEALTH specialist who set up Yorkshire’s first Long Covid clinic has said some of his patients are still suffering with the condition almost two years after they caught the virus, but he remains optimistic that new research could lead to more effective treatments.
Dr Paul Whitaker has treated hundreds of patients since he launched the clinic at St Luke’s Hospital in Bradford in May 2020 – six months before the NHS set up another 40 centres across the country.
The respiratory consultant said about two-thirds of patients have made significant progress and returned to work, but he still sees approximately 30 patients at his clinic who have “virtually made no recovery at all”.
People are diagnosed with Long Covid when they endure symptoms, such as fatigue, problems with concentration and shortness of breath, for 12 weeks. It is still not clear what causes these issues to persist.
An estimated 1.3m people in the UK are living with Long Covid and some say their symptoms are relatively mild while others claim the condition has destroyed their quality of life.
“The vast majority of patients we had right at the beginning, in early 2020, have made a recovery in the sense that they are now able to go back to work and function at a level which is compatible
with an almost normal life,” said Dr Whitaker.
“However, a lot of them, even though they’re at that level and are pretty grateful to be at that level, are still not physically back to where they were before.
“I saw a young man in clinic yesterday morning who developed quite severe Long Covid in 2020.
“Although he’s back at work full-time and he’s able to go for walks around the park with his children, he is still unable to run or walk quickly up a hill.
“He’s almost accepted that he’s not going to, at least in the shortterm, get that extra 10 or 20 per cent back that he’s lost.”
Long Covid patients in Bradford no longer have to travel to hospital, as they can now be referred to a community-based service and receive support from occupational therapists, physiotherapists and psychologists.
Dr Whitaker has welcomed the move and said it is now much easier for patients to access treatment, but more research is needed to help clinicians improve their understanding of the condition.
“The one thing which is still poorly understood is the actual mechanisms of how Long Covid develops,” Dr Whitaker said.
“But there’s a lot of evidence now that there is ongoing inflammation, especially vascular inflammation, and it’s possible that a lot of patients might be getting this ongoing inflammation and micro bloodclots.”
He cited a study which was published earlier this month by researchers at Stellenbosch University that found 25 Long Covid patients saw “a significant reduction” in their symptoms when they were treated for micro bloodclots.
He is still unable to run or walk quickly up a hill. Dr Paul Whitaker on a young man he first saw in 2020 at St Luke’s Hospital in Bradford.