Ongoing Health Problems Related to COVID-19
Post-Acute COVID Syndrome (PACS) covers a wide range of new, returning, or ongoing health problems after being infected with the COVID-19 virus. Even people who did not have COVID-19 symptoms in the days and weeks after they were infected can have PACS. These symptoms can present a variety of health problems for different lengths of time. Some of these symptoms and health issues include:
- Difficulty breathing or shortness of breath
- Tiredness or fatigue
- Symptoms that worsen after physical or mental activities (post-exertional malaise)
- Mental Problems including memory and difficulty thinking or concentrating (brain fog)
- Coughing
- Chest or stomach pain
- Heart palpitations (rapid heart beat)
- Headaches
- Joint/muscle pain
- Sleep problems
- Dizziness while standing (lightheadedness)
- Quality of Life Issues at home and work?
- Difficulty working?
- Changes in smell or taste
- Anxiety, depression
It is estimated that 10 – 20% of COVID-19 patients show one or more of these acute symptoms 12 weeks after a COVID-19 diagnosis. These symptoms and health problems can have a significant negative impact on one’s life including the inability to work, to not have the energy to function a full day, inability to exercise or do anything strenuous, and hospitalization.
Over the past year, strong evidence indicates rehabilitation programs combining physical therapy (PT) occupational therapy (OT), and exercise provide long-term health benefits that prevent, delay, mitigate, and reverse many of these PACS symptoms. These programs allow people to return to improve quality of life. Specifically returning to a normal, active, and functional lifestyle ; return to work; sleep through the night; and have less anxiety.
CPTE’s specialized PT-OT-Exercise model addresses the physical, emotional, cognitive, and functional issues of the individual’s unique symptoms. The program is successful in managing and reversing PACS. Our rehabilitation program incorporates ongoing research and follows the guidelines and successful outcomes from a number of rehabilitation programs around the US, including the PACS program developed by Dartmouth-Hitchcock Rehabilitation Department in Lebanon, NH.
For more information on how we treat PACS visit our Post-COVID PT and OT Rehabilitation resource. You can also contact us at (603) 880-0448 to schedule an assessment or speak with a post-COVID specialist in Nashua, Manchester, Merrimack, Hudson – Lowell Rd, Hudson – Derry Rd, Concord, Pelham, NH or South Nashua, NH.
