Infection with COVID-19 can lead to long-term gastrointestinal problems such as constipation and diarrhea, a study found.
Other such symptoms up to a year after infection are chronic acid reflux, bloating, and stomach pain.
U.S. study based on medical records of more than 11.6 million people, 154,000 of whom had coronavirus March 2020 to January 2021.
They compared that with 5.6 million people who were not infected with the disease during that time period, as well as a study of about 5.8 million people before the outbreak.
The researchers found that people infected with the virus had more gastrointestinal symptoms a year later than those who were not infected with the virus and the general population before the pandemic.
“Destructive even for healthy people”
Epidemiologist Ziyad Al-Aly, senior author of the study at the University of Washington, said it was “increasingly clear” that the gastrointestinal tract — a key pathway through the digestive system — was a “reservoir.” Coronavirus disease.
“This virus can be devastating, even in people who are considered healthy or have mild infections,” he said.
Symptoms tend to be more likely to occur in those more directly affected by the disease, such as anyone admitted to a hospital.
But they were relatively common overall, and infected people were 36 percent more likely to develop gastrointestinal problems.
The study found that COVID-19 made people 54% more likely to experience irritable bowel syndrome and digestive symptoms such as constipation, bloating, and diarrhea.
People were 35 percent more likely to develop acid reflux disease.
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It was found in the SAGE study that the longest Coronavirus patient Still organ damage a year later.
In the years since the outbreak began, people have reported a wide variety of symptoms, including depression, headaches, respiratory problems, hair loss and persistent changes in their senses of smell and taste.
According to other research published earlier in 2023, Those with milder disease during infection should see any long-term effects resolve within a year.
However, the latest study says its findings reflect an “urgent need to redouble and accelerate our efforts to develop strategies to prevent and treat the long-term health effects of the coronavirus”.
The results were published in the journal Nature Communications.