Lung Covid: this is how treatment should be made easier

“Information about this new disease is key,” Health Minister Johannes Rauch (Greens) told journalists on Wednesday. A new web tool is therefore intended to support general practitioners, who are the first point of contact for those affected, and to facilitate diagnosis. Because “the research situation is growing, but badly,” said Minister Rauch. So far, it is known that about three to five percent of people who have contracted Covid-19 also suffer from Long Covid. But it could be as high as 40 percent, an “alarming number.” The phenomenon is therefore included in the planning for the expected Corona autumn. It’s now clear that “there’s a lot more to it,” he explained.

A common problem with Lung Covid is that it is difficult to distinguish from other diseases. Therefore, the clinical picture is “incredibly fuzzy,” explains Susanne Rabady of the Karl Landsteiner Private University for Health Sciences in Krems. Long Covid manifests itself in very different ways, such as fatigue and exhaustion, shortness of breath, muscle pain, sleep disorders, but also psychological problems such as depression.

“Prevent doctors from being overwhelmed”
However, these symptoms are ambiguous, so they can have other causes as well. For example, fatigue can be a sign of diabetes, Rabady gave an example. The symptoms should therefore be carefully clarified by the general practitioner. Since Lung Covid is still a poorly researched phenomenon, the Ministry of Health sponsored tool should help. It is intended to “prevent excessive demands on general practitioners,” said Johannes Steinhart, appointed president of the Medical Association. The website is primarily aimed at treating physicians, but also offers bundled additional information, for example about employment law. Entrepreneurs should also benefit from this.

It is important for patients that they “Don’t send them around unnecessarily,” Rabady emphasized, so she warned against overdiagnosis, for example because GPs refer their patients to specialist colleagues. Our system must learn to deal with people who have long been affected by Covid,” said Minister Rauch. Sending people into a circle would lead to “understandable frustration.”

Individual therapy important
Rabady stressed that once other diseases can be ruled out and diagnosed, therapy should be individualized based on the different symptoms. There are many long-term Covid patients who show no signs of recovery even after a long time – some have symptoms for more than a year. The problem here is that some would return to day-to-day work too soon. “They self-destruct if they overload themselves,” Rabady warned. The long absenteeism due to Long Covid in families who are struggling financially is difficult. Disability often gives the feeling, “I’m worth nothing,” explained the doctor.

The goal is to provide patients with optimal care, but at the same time, “we have also seen the healthcare system struggle with long-term Covid,” said Johannes Steinhart of the Medical Association. For example, there are billing issues due to the holistic care that various specialists such as orthopedists and speech therapists provide because in certain areas there is still a cap on what the health insurer pays. A systematic approach is needed here, Steinhart emphasized.

“Needs new forms of financing”
Health Minister Rauch hinted that more money should soon be raised for the treatment of Lung Covid, without being more specific. He referred to discussions with the social security authorities and the federal states. New forms of financing are needed. We have spent money to deal with the pandemic and we will have to spend more to deal with the aftermath. Just continuing with what we have will not be enough,” he confirmed. He also said the poor data situation on Long Covid criticized by experts should be improved.