University of California, Irvine launches program to treat prolonged symptoms of COVID-19

Margaret Goldstein still feels the effects of COVID-19 five months after diagnosis.

Lung damage, malaise, and high heart rate are protracted symptoms of Tustin residents who refuse to disclose their age.

“My problem is that my heart rate rises very quickly and then I’m out of breath with a simple activity,” says Goldstein. “I think the first thing I noticed was when I was making a bed. My heart started to throb … My heart rate was so high that it looked like 160 just by changing the bed sheets. “

Goldstein is one of many suffering “Long-distance syndrome” This includes many symptoms such as malaise, shortness of breath, brain fog, amnesia, poor concentration, joint pain, chest pain, anxiety, and depression.

It affects between 10% and 30% of people who had COVID-19.

For several weeks, Goldstein has been backed by a new UC Irvine Health Program to address the long-term effects of COVID-19. The outpatient program, which soft-opened on April 1, has offices in Tustin and Costa Mesa.

“Given the huge number, 30 million Americans have been diagnosed with COVID-19. Therefore, given that 10% to 30% of these patients develop chronic symptoms, a staggering number of patients. Will develop these debilitating symptoms, “said Dr. Long-Co Nguyen, who oversees the program.

Researchers across the country are working to better understand long-distance syndrome. Currently, it is not well known.

Recently, National Institute of Health Release An initiative to study the syndrome, also known as “long COVID”.

Nguyen said the cause of long-distance transport is still unknown, but there is a theory that the virus causes an inflammatory response in the human immune system that lasts weeks or months after the virus disappears. She said the researchers have not yet identified factors that could increase the likelihood of developing long-distance syndrome.

People suffering from long-distance transport may still have symptoms of COVID-19, but there may also be new symptoms that were not present while infected with the virus.

“So far, no one seems to be at risk of developing long-term COVID,” Nguyen said.

The University of California, Irvine is not the only Orange County program. St. Jude Medical Center Orange County Children’s Hospital also has a long-distance transport syndrome program.

Nguyen said it is important that the medical community is now focused on helping recover from COVID-19.

“I think we in the medical community have put a lot of emphasis on treating acute COVID and getting an accurate picture of how to treat it, but not so much on recovery,” Nguyen said.

The University of California, Irvine program is based on primary care. According to Nguyen, the goal is to systematically evaluate each symptom, after which the patient can be referred to many professionals to tailor care for each symptom.

To address the common long-distance transport symptoms of fatigue, UC Irvine has a rehabilitation program that helps to reconstruct a patient’s endurance level to a pre-COVID state.

The University of California, Irvine also has a team of psychologists to help patients with post-traumatic stress disorders, anxiety, and depression.

Goldstein said he had been looking for a program like the one offered by the University of California, Irvine for some time.

She spoke with one of the program’s doctors and was referred to a speech therapist who assisted with heart treatment and physical condition management, as well as her brain fog and concentration problems.

In December, doctors found ground glass-like turbidity in her lungs. This is the gray area that indicates that the body has been infected. Goldstein will do a CT scan next month to see if the problem has improved.

Goldstein’s heart rate is treated with medication, but she continues to feel that her concentration and malaise problems have not been medically addressed. She said she was excited to see her doctor seeming to have some ways to help improve those symptoms.

“As far as my fatigue is concerned, it wasn’t dealt with directly,” Goldstein said. “I was just surprised. [the doctor] There were several other things I could do now to speed up my recovery. ”

According to Nguyen, the University of California, Irvine program currently sees about 30 patients, which will continue to grow.

The program may be extended to other clinic sites to serve a variety of patients throughout Orange County.

“If the research is correct, this will have a significant impact on our healthcare system because of these long chronic conditions and how debilitating they can be,” Nguyen said. “Unfortunately, we expect a large influx of patients.”

We support our coverage by becoming a digital subscriber.