A Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM) professor said some of these patients are now suffering from “brain fog”, among other symptoms.
‘Brain fog’ is believed to cause patients to have memory loss or have difficulty in concentrating.
Known as post-Covid syndrome or ‘long Covid’, former patients still exhibit symptoms for 12 weeks or more due to various Covid-19 complications to one’s organs.
“I had stomach ache for four months,” Yang Farina Abd Aziz, a Covid-19 survivor, told FMT.
Farina asked if she and others like her were truly safe from the effects of the virus.
Covid-19 infections are still occurring at alarming rates worldwide and have not shown any decline, including in Malaysia. As of July 1, a total of 758,967 cases were reported with 64,453 active cases in the country.
While some 688,260 patients have recovered and cut off their pink wristbands as of the beginning of this month, some former patients contacted by FMT say they are still left wondering about their fate and health status.
Another survivor, Nyaros Abu Bakar, said she, her husband and son still felt extremely unwell despite being discharged from hospital.
“Why does it feel like this? The doctor allowed us to go home, so we should be healthy, right?” she asked.
What does the health ministry say?
The health ministry said that in general, clinical data showed that the majority of Covid-19 patients were able to make a full recovery although a handful of them experienced post-Covid syndrome.
According to a clinical study conducted by the ministry involving 1,004 patients from Categories 4 and 5 who received follow-up treatment, some 66% suffered from long Covid.
Among the most common symptoms are lethargy, difficulty breathing when doing activities, difficulty sleeping at night, coughing and restlessness.
To date, the treatment offered is based on the symptoms exhibited by the patient and the bodily functions involved.
What do doctors say?
Following a viral video of a child helping his father, who was infected with Covid-19, with wuduk (ablutions) before being intubated, FMT contacted Dr Nur Sakinah Kamarul Bahrin to find out more.
The medical practitioner at a clinic in Wangsa Melawati is experienced in screening Covid-19 infections.
Sakinah explained that completing the mandatory quarantine period did not guarantee that one was fully immune to the virus.
She said her mother was still facing the effects of Covid-19 nearly two months post-recovery. The virus claimed the life of her 63-year-old father, Kamarul Bahrin Mohamad.
Sakinah’s mother now relies on medications, including steroids to reduce the effects of inflammation on her lungs.
“The more comorbidities you have, the more important it is for you to get the vaccine,” she said, adding that the side-effects of the vaccine are minimal compared with how bad it would be if one were to get Covid-19.
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