The family physician’s role in long COVID management
A paucity of both data and therapeutics presents obstacles to care and makes your role in symptom management, psychological support, and referral—all described here—essential.
PRACTICE RECOMMENDATIONS
› Acknowledge and address the persistence of COVID-19 symptoms when meeting with patients. C
› Continue to monitor persistent, fluctuating symptoms of COVID-19 well after hospital discharge or apparent resolution of initial symptoms. C
› Provide psychological support and resources for mental health care to patients regarding their ongoing fears and frustrations with persistent COVID-19 symptoms. C
Strength of recommendation (SOR)
A Good-quality patient-oriented evidence
B Inconsistent or limited-quality patient-oriented evidence
C Consensus, usual practice, opinion, disease-oriented evidence, case series
This new clinical entity is a formidable challenge
Long COVID is a new condition that requires comprehensive evaluation to understand the full, often long-term, effects of COVID-19. Our review of this condition substantiated that symptoms of long COVID often affect a variety of organs13,14 and have been observed to persist for ≥ 2 years.8
Some studies that have examined the long-term effects of COVID-19 included only participants who were not hospitalized; others include hospitalized patients exclusively. The literature is mixed in regard to including severity of initial infection as it relates to long COVID. Available research demonstrates that it is common for people with COVID-19 to experience persistent symptoms that can significantly impact daily life and well-being.
Likely, it will be several years before we even begin to understand the full extent of COVID-19. Until research elucidates the relationship between the disease and short- and long-term health outcomes, clinicians should:
- acknowledge and address the reality of long COVID when meeting with persistently symptomatic patients,
- provide support, therapeutic listening, and referral to rehabilitation as appropriate, and
- offer information on the potential for long-term effects of COVID-19 to vaccine-hesitant patients.
a “Systems, symptoms, and treatments for post-COVID patients,” pages 1231-1234 in the source article (www.jabfm.org/content/jabfp/34/6/1229.full.pdf).30
CORRESPONDENCE
Nicole Mayo, PhD, 46 Prince Street, Rochester, NY 14607; Nicole_Mayo@URMC.Rochester.edu
