Coronavirus: Study being prepared on ‘long Covid’  

The health ministry will look into ways to help sufferers of ‘long-Covid’ once studies on the syndrome are complete, health minister Michalis Hadjipantelas said on Friday.

‘Long-Covid’ is a term coined for when individuals who were previously ill with the coronavirus develop an array of issues that affect their physical and mental health on a more long-term basis.

“We at the ministry have been considering offering additional services to [sufferers of long Covid]. We will put this in practice once we are ready, and based on the results of the study and advice from our experts,” the minister said.

The study is being prepared in cooperation with associates of the Federation of Patients’ Associations (Osak) and members of the government’s advisory team on coronavirus, and led by Professor Constantinos N. Phellas, Senior Vice Rector at the University of Nicosia and committee member.

Also participating are Assistant Professor at the Medical School of the European University and head of the scientific advisory committee Dr Constantinos Tsioutis and Dr Christos Petrou, Associate Professor of Pharmacology at the University of Nicosia and adviser to the health minister.

Around 30 per cent of those who contract Covid end up with chronic symptoms, Tsioutis said, explaining that patients are considered long Covid sufferers if they are still presenting symptoms four weeks after being discharged.

This is something that has also been noticed in children who contract the virus, he said.

Long Covid affects everyone differently but “in my experience it has very serious effects on women,” from hair loss and cycle instability to hormone imbalances and anxiety, he added.

Men do not present any symptoms in particular but their recovery period tends to be longer, he said.

“We will look into all of this during our study and will take into account quality of life and the social aspect” Tsioutis finally said.

During the same press conference, the experts presented the findings of a different study that looked into public perceptions on vaccinations.