The people who had been treated with Covid-19 and survived for at least a week after being discharged are more than twice as likely as the general population to die or be re-admitted to hospital in the coming months, according to a new major British scientific study.
This finding, according to the scientists, demonstrates the need for increased medical follow-up of hospitalized patients with coronavirus infection after their discharge from the hospital, as in their case there are more risks. Previous research has shown that people with Covid-19 may experience more health problems after their initial infection and recovery, new research confirms.
Researchers from the School of Health and Tropical Medicine in London and the University of Oxford, led by Dr. Krishnan Baskaran, who published the study in the medical journal PLoS Medicine, compared data on nearly 25.000 patients with Covid-19 who had been discharged after their recovery, about 100.000 healthy people who had never been infected with coronavirus, and 15.000 people who had been treated for the flu in the past.
The statistical analysis showed that, compared to the general population, those who had been hospitalized for coronavirus had - in the coming months - twice the risk of being re-admitted to the hospital, as well as almost five times higher risk of death from any cause. Compared to patients admitted to hospital due to influenza, patients with Covid-19 had a higher risk of death, from any cause, new hospitalization and in particular death due to dementia.
Dr Baskaran said: "Our findings show that people who were serious Covid-19, which required a hospital stay, face a significantly increased risk of further health problems in the months following their hospitalization. It is important for patients and doctors to be aware of this so that any problems that arise can be treated as quickly as possible. Our findings also highlight the importance of vaccination, which is the best available tool for preventing severe Covid-19».
Link to the scientific publication
Source: RES-EAP