As research continues on the novel coronavirus, more and more discoveries continue to be made. While many Covid-19 patients only experience symptoms for a couple of days, others are left with debilitating side effects for years. This has widely become known as ‘Long-Covid.’
A new study has warned that some Long-Covid patients experience skin rashes for up to five months. Researchers from Massachusetts General Hospital have analysed 990 Long-Covid cases from 39 countries and found that on average, patients experienced dermatological symptoms for 12 days.
However, some people reported skin issues for up to 150 days. These skin issues ranged from hives to chillblains, while several patients experienced ‘Covid toes’. Dr Esther Freeman, who led the study, said:
“Our registry identified a previously unreported subset of patients with longstanding skin symptoms from COVID-19. We highlight patients with pernio/chilblains, also known as COVID toes, who have had symptoms for as long as 150 days.”
“This data adds to our knowledge about how COVID-19 can affect multiple different organ systems, even after patients have recovered from their acute infection. The skin can provide a visual window into inflammation that may be going on elsewhere in the body.”
The study comes shortly after researchers the University of Oxford found that a large proportion of Covid-19 patients still experience breathlessness, fatigue, anxiety and depression up to 3 months after contracting the virus.
In the study, the researchers analysed 58 coronavirus patients with moderate to severe Covid-18, as well as 30 uninfected controls from the community. The participants underwent MRI scans of their brain, lungs, heart, liver and key, as well as lung function tests, and assessments of their quality of live, cognitive and mental health. The results revealed that three months after the onset of disease, 64% of Covid-19 patients had breathlessness, while 55% complained of fatigue. The MRI scans also showed that 60% of Covid-19 patients had abnormal tissue in their lungs, 29% in their kidneys, 26% in their hearts and 10% in their livers.
