Just How Common Are the ‘Rare’ Complications of COVID-19? – Verywell Health

Key Takeaways

The list of common COVID-19 symptoms hasnt changed much over the course of the pandemic: fever, cough, fatigue, congestion, loss of smell and taste, etc. But some people with the virus can also experience symptoms and complications that many others dont.

Now, new research published in the journal Medicina breaks those rare complications down. For the study, researchers analyzed data from 55 research articles and 42 case studies, looking at four major organ systems to see how they were impacted by someone having COVID-19.

After the analysis, the researchers came up with a list of atypical COVID-19 complications, as well as how often they happened in patients.

The researchers grouped complications by the organ system impacted: the gastrointestinal system, neurological system, renal system, and cardiovascular system. Heres what they foundand what it means in simple terms.

Seven research studies highlighted several gastrointestinal symptoms:

To learn more about the outcomes of these symptoms, researchers turned to case reports. Among 19 patients with gastrointestinal complications from COVID observed in 14 case reports, nine patients died, five were cured, and four were still hospitalized and undergoing treatment when the study period ended.

Neurological complications of COVID-19 were reflected in 14 research studies:

Again, researchers relied on case reports to learn about potential outcomes of these neurological symptoms. Of the 11 patients observed in 10 case reports, seven patients were cured, and two were still hospitalized and receiving treatment at the end of the study period.

The renal systemalso known as the urinary systemconsists of the kidneys, bladder, ureters, and urethra. Researchers observed renal system complications in 16 studies:

The data about potential outcomes of these symptoms is reflective of only seven patients across seven case studies. Of those, five were cured or improved, one patient died, and one patient was discharged but wasnt completely cured.

Eighteen research studies explored cardiovascular system complications of COVID:

Based on limited data from 11 case reports of people who experienced these complications, five patients improved or were cured, and two died.

These findings are valuable for doctors because they help clinicians understand the full scope of what the virus can do to a person, infectious disease expertAmesh A. Adalja, MD, senior scholar at the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security, told Verywell.

Whats not clear from the findings is whether being vaccinated against COVID-19 lowered the odds of developing these rare complications.

"I anticipate that vaccination might prevent these complications from occurring, William Schaffner, MD,an infectious disease specialist and professor at the Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, told Verywell. Some of these are quite serious.

But Adalja said that its difficult to know for sure.

[Vaccine protection] will vary depending upon the actual causes of the symptoms, because many symptoms are the result of the immune response to the virus combined with the direct actions of the virus, he said.

The researchers urged healthcare practitioners in the study to monitor COVID-19 patients for these complications and not focus exclusively on treating respiratory symptoms.

Post-COVID effects should be monitored, and follow-up of patients should be performed on a regular basis to check for long-term complications, the researchers wrote.

These complications of COVID-19 are still relatively rare. However, if you are struggling with your health after having a COVID-19 infection or you are developing new symptoms, talk to your doctor. They should be able to give you a full evaluation to see what could be behind your symptoms.

The information in this article is current as of the date listed, which means newer information may be available when you read this. For the most recent updates on COVID-19, visit ourcoronavirus news page.

By Korin Miller Korin Miller is a health and lifestyle journalist who has been published in The Washington Post, Prevention, SELF, Women's Health, The Bump, and Yahoo, among other outlets.

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Just How Common Are the 'Rare' Complications of COVID-19? - Verywell Health