Covid-19 News and Discussions
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‘Like 35-year-old woman in the body of a 70-year-old lady’: Four years into the pandemic, Canadians with long COVID are still struggling
The Globe followed up with readers who shared their experience with post-COVID-19 condition last year
www.theglobeandmail.com
Canadians with long COVID are struggling with myriad symptoms and patchwork treatments
CAORA MCKENNAPUBLISHED YESTERDAY UPDATED 3 HOURS AGO
A year ago, Sandy Choiniere was so weak from long COVID, she couldn’t hold her 20-month-old daughter in her arms while standing.
Today, she feels functional, but only because she’s being careful, listening to her body and resting when she needs to. “I sometimes still feel like a 35-year-old woman in the body of a 70-year-old lady,” she says. “Sometimes I have to cancel plans I have with friends because I am too tired,” something that has been hard to accept.
Ms. Choiniere is one of the Canadians who shared their stories of long COVID with The Globe and Mail in 2023. Twelve months later, we followed up to see how they’re doing.
Of the 11 people who responded, one was doing worse, spending 23 hours a day in a darkened room and wearing ear plugs most of the time. Five were doing about the same, with one saying she still felt like a living corpse. Four said they were doing better, with one saying he felt more like himself now than at any time in the past two years. And one person said she was about 90-per-cent recovered, having been told by doctors that what is left will likely be chronic and need to be managed for the rest of her life.
They’re only 11 of the estimated 3.5 million (and counting) Canadian adults who reported experiencing long-term symptoms following a COVID-19 infection.
There is still no known test for long COVID, also known as post-COVID-19 condition (PCC), so diagnosis is made following the World Health Organization’s definition of “symptoms and medical complications that persist, return, or emerge 12 weeks after the initial acute COVID-19 infection phase.”
Manali Mukherjee, an assistant professor in the department of medicine at Hamilton’s McMaster University, says “anybody who has persisting symptoms that they didn’t have before or that cannot be explained by any other diagnosis” has long COVID.
A February report from the federal Office of the Chief Science Advisor lays out the wide range of body systems affected by PCC – the respiratory, systemic, nervous, cardiovascular, gastrointestinal, skin, musculoskeletal and endocrine systems – and their related symptoms.
The most commonly reported symptoms are fatigue, shortness of breath and cognitive dysfunction, but the list is long, ranging from hair loss and tinnitus to allergic reactions and feeling hot and cold sensations.
Laurie Woelfle, 62, experiences vertigo, sensitivity to light and sounds, horrendous fatigue and many neurological issues. Candice Makhan, 49, has chest pain, heart palpitations, loss of appetite and dizziness, among other symptoms. Adriana Patino’s heart rate will spike for no reason, caused by dysautonomia, which randomly puts her body into fight or flight mode.
One of Nadine Hardiman’s worst symptoms is post-exertional malaise, where her body has no energy to move or think after doing something physical. “Your body just dies,” she says. Bev Conquergood, 61, still hasn’t recovered her sense of taste and smell.
The February report explains that the modest knowledge of the causes, prevention and treatment of post-COVID-19 condition affects the care people can access.
“Is there a one-size-fits-all treatment for long COVID at the moment? No,” says Dr. Mukherjee. So physicians are treating specific symptoms as they arise.
Some of the people who spoke with The Globe are getting treatment and support from long COVID clinics – and some who have been dismissed by them. Some are part of ongoing studies, and some have navigated their illness mostly on their own.
Ms. Woelfle in Calgary sees a primary care physician, a neurologist, a cardiologist, an endocrinologist and an internal specialist, and she attends weekly restorative sessions with a physiotherapist with the Breathe Long COVID Support Program at Synaptic Health. She found a lot of her long COVID resources on her own, with help from her primary care physician to connect with specialists.
Open this photo in gallery:
Laurie Woelfle, photographed at her home in Calgary, Alberta in 2023.LEAH HENNEL/THE GLOBE AND MAIL
Ms. Hardiman lives in Prospect Bay, N.S., and is on her fourth nurse practitioner in four years owing to office turnover, something that’s made getting care more difficult. “Every time there’s something new, it’s like, I gotta start all over again,” she says.
Ms. Choiniere saw an occupational therapist to help her take care of her young daughter and manage her tiredness, and a chiropractor to help with dizziness. She had follow-ups with her family doctor and cardiologist and is on the waiting list for a long COVID clinic in Montreal.
The vast differences in care they’re receiving reflect the national picture. A December, 2023, report from Statistics Canada said that about 40 per cent of those with long-term symptoms who sought health care about their symptoms reported difficulties with access.
“Whether it’s rural or whether it’s metropolitan,” access is a problem says Dr. Mukherjee, owing to “the sheer volume of people who are looking for that help.”
To fill the gaps, COVID long-haulers, as they call themselves, have turned to Facebook groups and X, formerly known as Twitter, for advice, tips and to share resources. Ms. Patino wrote a guide for post-exertional malaise to help other people with the same struggle. Melinda Maldonado’s husband became a “research warrior,” scouring support groups for leads on treatment and symptom management.
Dr. Mukherjee’s research team at McMaster University is working on the molecular level, looking for inflammatory markers that are increased in the blood in her study of more than 120 individuals with long COVID. Their hope is to be able to develop a simple blood test that can tell us who will recover from acute COVID-19 and who will get long COVID, and even further, if there are biomarkers that could identify what kind of issues long COVID will cause in someone.
A national non-profit group called the Canadian Covid Society also launched last week with co-founders saying the organization is needed as public health agencies have pulled back on COVID-19 prevention measures and awareness campaigns.
“There’s a lot of positive energy in the world of research so you always keep hope,” says Ms. Patino, “but at the same time, there is a part of you that three years in has to say, ‘Well, this may be the best it gets.’”
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Yommie
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After Four Years, 59% in U.S. Say COVID-19 Pandemic Is Over
About six in 10 Americans think the COVID-19 pandemic is over, but roughly the same proportion of adults say their lives are not back to normal.
news.gallup.com
After Four Years, 59% in U.S. Say COVID-19 Pandemic Is Over
More than four in 10 do not expect their lives to return to pre-pandemic normalcy
BY MEGAN BRENAN
WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Four years after COVID-19 forced widespread shutdowns of businesses and schools across the U.S., 59% of Americans believe the pandemic is over. At the same time, about as many, 57%, report that their lives have not returned to normal, and 43% expect they never will.
National worry about contracting COVID-19 is near its lowest point in the trend dating back to the early days of the pandemic -- although, as has been the case throughout the pandemic, Democrats express much more concern about COVID-19 than Republicans do.
The impact of the coronavirus on the public since emerging as a global threat in 2020 is evident in the finding that seven in 10 U.S. adults report having had COVID-19 at least once.
These findings are from a March 5-11 update to Gallup's probability-based COVID-19 web panel tracking poll, which began in March 2020.
Majority of Americans, but Not Democrats, Say Pandemic Is Over
Gallup has tracked Americans’ perceptions of whether the pandemic is over in the U.S. since June 2021, during the COVID-19 vaccine rollout when most Americans received their first shot. But it was not until late May/early June 2023 that a majority thought it was over. This was shortly after President Joe Biden signed a congressional resolution to end the nation’s state of emergency and the U.S. and global public health emergency declarations ended. Fewer, though still a slim 53% majority, continued to believe it had come to an end in late August/early September.The latest 59% of Americans who believe the pandemic is over is up slightly from late last summer but is still shy of the positivity expressed last May/June.
Republicans (79%) are almost twice as likely as Democrats (41%) to say the pandemic is over, while 63% of independents agree.
Majorities of Republicans have thought the pandemic is over since April 2022, and majorities of independents have said the same since February 2023. In contrast, only once, in May/June 2023, has a majority of Democrats agreed the pandemic is over.
Nearly Six in 10 Americans Say Pre-Pandemic Normalcy Has Still Not Returned
Americans’ current reports of whether their lives have returned to pre-pandemic normalcy are on par with last May/June. Currently, 43% of U.S. adults say their lives are completely back to normal, and 57% say they are not. That 57% includes 14% who believe their lives will eventually return to normal and 43% who think their pre-pandemic normalcy is gone for good.A slim 52% majority of Republicans say their lives are completely back to normal, while roughly four in 10 Democrats and independents agree. Forty-six percent pluralities of both Democrats and independents do not think they will ever return to the normal that existed before COVID-19, while similar percentages of all three party groups say their old normal will return at some point.
Most Americans Aren’t Worried About Getting COVID-19, Say They Had It
Americans’ concern about getting COVID-19 is near its lowest point since the beginning of the pandemic. Currently, 20% of U.S. adults say they are very or somewhat worried that they will contract COVID-19. Worry was slightly lower than now in June 2021 (17%), before the onslaught of the delta and omicron variants, and in May/June 2023 (18%).Worry about falling victim to the disease was highest -- between 55% and 59% -- at various points in the first year of the pandemic before vaccines were available.
Worry is significantly lower among those who evaluate their overall health as excellent or very good than those who say their health is fair or poor. Nearly nine in 10 of those who rate their health positively say they are not worried about contracting COVID-19, compared with less than seven in 10 of those who rate their health negatively.
Meanwhile, 70% of U.S. adults say they have tested positive for COVID-19 (59%) or have not tested positive but believe they had it (11%). This high incidence of infection may be one reason why worry about contracting COVID-19 is near the record low -- either because they feel protected due to antibodies or confident they can get through it without major health consequences.
The rates of self-reported COVID-19 infections are similar across all three political party groups and mirror the national average.
U.S. adults’ reports of when they tested positive for COVID-19 (or believe they had the disease) show that 2022 was the year with the highest infection rates. This tracks with U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention statistics, which found the sharpest spike in cases was in 2022 as a result of the highly transmissible omicron variant. In all, 25% of U.S. adults say they had COVID-19 in 2020, 34% in 2021, 46% in 2022, 32% in 2023, and just 8% so far this year.
Bottom Line
Four years after COVID-19 swept across the country, with nearly 1.2 million COVID-related deaths in the U.S. to date, six in 10 U.S. adults believe the pandemic is over. That does not mean that most Americans have resumed their pre-pandemic lives or expect to ever do so. In fact, 43% do not expect their lives to ever return to a pre-COVID state. But their worry about contracting the disease has waned as increasing numbers of Americans have developed antibodies as a result of infection or vaccination.
Yommie
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How bad are flu, COVID-19 and RSV? These charts show how respiratory viruses are spreading in the US
Current trends indicate the U.S. has hit the end of a long flu season. How active are the respiratory viruses?
apnews.com
How bad are flu, COVID-19 and RSV? These charts show how respiratory viruses are spreading in the US
BY NICKY FORSTERUpdated 5:08 PM EDT, March 15, 2024
Spring is nearly here, but the 2023-24 respiratory virus season isn’t over yet. Viral activity from flu, COVID-19 and RSV has fallen from the peak, but levels remain elevated.
Here’s the situation in four charts:
How active are the respiratory viruses?
The CDC gauges activity by tracking doctor visits that involve a patient showing flu-like symptoms. Last week, those made up 3.7% of all visits, or about 1 visit in every 27.Where is activity highest?
Flu activity is highest in the central U.S. Across the nation, the activity level is very high for two states, and high for another 12.Which virus is most prevalent?
The rate at which tests come back positive for each virus can suggest which ones are most responsible for general respiratory illness activity. Flu has the highest positivity rate, at 15.4%, an increase from the previous week. Positivity rates for COVID-19 and RSV continue to fall.Hospital admissions
Hospitalizations can give an idea of the danger associated with each virus. COVID-19 is hospitalizing people at a rate of about 4 per 100,000, the highest rate among the three viruses.ADVERTISEMENT
Takeaway
While RSV and COVID-19 activity are waning, flu is keeping respiratory illness at elevated levels in many parts of the country.
Yommie
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Brisk US flu activity continues as COVID indicators drop further
Brisk US flu activity continues as COVID indicators drop further
Lisa SchnirringMarch 15, 2024
The nation's flu activity remained elevated last week, with an increase in test positivity, as levels of two other respiratory viruses—COVID-19 and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV)—continued their steady declines, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said in updates today.
In its respiratory virus snapshot of all three diseases, the CDC said illness levels remain elevated in many parts of the country. Sixteen jurisdictions are reporting high or very high activity, down from 22 the previous week.
RSV indicators are declining in all parts of the country, with levels now below the epidemic threshold in 6 of 10 regions.
Flu hot spots in Central, Midwestern states
Flu activity ebbs a bit in the first weeks of January, but has been on the rebound since February, mainly driven by rises in regional activity. States in the Central and Midwest regions are currently reporting the highest activity.The percentage of respiratory tests that were positive for flu last week at clinical labs rose to 15.4%, and labs are seeing roughly equal proportions of the 2009 H1N1 and H3N2 strains of influenza A and influenza B, the CDC said in its latest weekly FluView update.
Other indicators showed declines, including outpatient visits for flulike illness, which are at 3.7% and above the national baseline. Flu hospitalizations also declined last week, continuing a downward trend since January. Seniors make up the highest proportion of flu hospitalizations, though levels are elevated for all age-groups. Meanwhile, emergency department visits for flu are highest in children.
Overall deaths were up slightly, and the CDC reported 13 more pediatric flu deaths, raising the season's total to 116. The deaths occurred from late December through early March. Nine deaths were due to influenza A, three from influenza A, and one from a coinfection involving 2009 H1N1 and influenza B.
The CDC also reported 2 more pediatric flu deaths from the 2022-23 season, putting that total at 184.
COVID wastewater detections at moderate level
In COVID data updates today, the CDC reported declines in both of its severity markers. Hospitalizations declined 13.5% from the previous week, and deaths dropped 4.8% over the same period.Among early indicators, national test positivity declined 1.5% compared to a week ago and is at 5.2% nationally. Emergency department visits dropped 24.8% and are still highest in children younger than 12 months old and in seniors.
Wastewater SARS-CoV-2 detections, considered another early marker, remain at the moderate level. Levels are still highest in the South, but, even there, levels are dropping steadily.
In variant proportion updates, JN.1 remained dominant, with its offshoot JN.1.13 rising to 9.5% from 4.6% the previous week.
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