Long Covid sufferers - do they have hidden lung damage?
Jane Deith
A really interesting assignment this weekend for Channel 4 News; speaking to doctors who believe people who developed Long Covid despite having a mild dose of Coronavirus and never needing hospital, may have hidden lung damage. This might explain why they are still experiencing breathlessness, one, or in some cases, two years after infection, and yet, previous scans and tests they’ve had have all come back clear.
Watch the piece here.
The discovery of potentially microscopic abnormalities in their lungs is thanks to a very clever use of harmless Xenon gas, inhaled while someone’s in an MRI scanner.
The pilot study is being scaled up and if the findings are definitive, this could lead to new treatments for long Covid sufferers. Great news for people like Katrina, whose life is really limited by her breathlessness. As she puts it. something which should come naturally - breathing - has become traumatic. She just can’t trust her breathing any more.