Breathing difficulties after covid-19: a guide for primary care

What you need to knowBreathing difficulties are common sequelae of covid-19Typically there are multiple contributing factors to breathing difficulties within an individualBreathing pattern disorder can be positively diagnosed from the history and clinical examination, but parallel investigations to rule out other causes may be necessarySelf management support tools may help some patients regain a normal breathing patternFurther investigation and specialist respiratory physiotherapy should be considered when symptoms are not improvingAround one in four adults who were hospitalised with covid-19 and one in six who were not hospitalised experience persistent breathing difficulties beyond four weeks after SARS-CoV-2 infection,12 and a cohort study in China demonstrated that breathlessness can persist beyond two years.3 In long covid (defined as symptoms beyond four weeks4) breathing difficulties can be the predominant feature or be part of a multisystem presentation.5 Cardiorespiratory complications after covid-19 include thromboembolic disease, interstitial lung disease, and heart failure and need to…
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