Pulmonary Sequelae at 4 Months After COVID-19 Infection: A Single-Centre Experience of a COVID Follow-Up Service
Rebecca C. Robey, Katie Kemp, Philip Hayton, Dalia Mudawi, Ran Wang, Melanie Greaves, Veronica Yioe, Pilar Rivera‐Ortega, Cristina Avram, Nazia Chaudhuri
Abstract
INTRODUCTION: At the end of the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic, more than 78 million known survivors were recorded. The long-term pulmonary sequelae of COVID-19 remain unknown. METHODS: We performed a retrospective analysis of a post-COVID follow-up service to estimate the burden of persistent pulmonary morbidity in hospitalised COVID survivors. RESULTS: in the patient group as a whole. In ICU patients, TLCO correlated negatively with maximum inspired positive airway pressure. Computed tomography scans (n = 72) at an average of 18 weeks post-discharge showed evidence of persistent ground glass opacities in 44% and fibrosis in 21% (equating to 7% of the entire cohort). CONCLUSION: Our data add to the growing evidence that there will be pulmonary sequelae in a proportion of COVID survivors, providing some insight into what may become a significant chronic global health problem.