Coronavirus: some Hong Kong doctors have doubts about long Covid and how it should be measured
- Private family doctors say patients’ long Covid symptoms can be treated by living a healthier lifestyle
- City also reports 407 imported cases on Monday, highest since pandemic began in 2020
Most patients suffering from long Covid have mild symptoms that are either subjective or related to lifestyle, private family doctors in Hong Kong have said, after a university professor estimated that 2 millions residents may suffer from the condition.
The city also reported 407 Covid-19 imported cases on Monday, the highest since the pandemic began in 2020, while the daily number of serious cases in hospitals remained stable at 29.
General practitioner Dr Edmund Lam Wing-wo said most of the long Covid patients he had examined experienced mild symptoms, such as fatigue, shortness of breath and poor appetite, about two or three months after recovery.
“The symptoms are also related to a healthy lifestyle, such as exercise, diet and sleep, as well as mental health and stress,” he said. “After recovering from any other illnesses such as cancer, cold or influenza, patients may also experience after-effects. It is entirely normal that the body may need to recuperate after recovery.”
While no cure exists yet for long Covid, most patients could fully recover after adopting healthier lifestyles within three months, Lam said.
Hong Kong on Monday recorded 5,361 coronavirus cases and five related deaths. Responding to the record high of imported cases, respiratory medicine specialist Dr Leung Chi-chiu said the number should not be a cause for concern.
“[It is] expected with an increasing number of passengers and most of the [cases] were spotted during testing at the airport,” he said. “[Infections] not detected by testing at the airport remain at around 100 or less, and [the number] is small compared to 5,000 local cases per day.”