CH Allegheny Enterprise

An Evolving Situation Science continues to uncover the nuances of COVID-19 By Michael Gilbert Nearly a year into the pandemic, most people are well aware of the signs and symptoms of COVID-19.

They know that if they have a fever, cough, shortness of breath, fatigue, body aches and persistent pain or pressure in the chest, it is important to seek emergency medical care and — if hospitalization doesn’t occur — quarantine for two weeks. Not yet as clear are the long- term effects to those who have been diagnosed with COVID-19.

Plenty of Unknowns There are many diseases in which a patient knows the likely long-term effects before treatment or recovery has begun. A cancer patient, for example, who relies on chemotherapy may experience nerve damage, heart problems, reduced lung capacity and hair loss as part of the treatment. The novel coronavirus, which was first identified in Wuhan, China in late 2019, is still in its infancy. Not as much is known about it as other diseases. “This is still such a new disease that there is nothing concrete regarding long-term side effects,” says Dr. Tiffany Dumont, a cardio- vascular and pulmonary disease specialist with the Allegheny Health Network. Dumont did note some patients - even those with only a mild case of COVID-19 - have experienced shortness of breath as long as two months into their recovery. Shortness of breath is to be expected, Dumont says, because the virus attacks the lungs and causes inflammation. According to a press release posted by the Centers for Disease Con- trol and Prevention, the lungs are not the only organs to be affected by

28 WINTER 2021

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