Another Reason to get the Jab

Some 46 percent of recovered patients have low lung capacity

 

The topic dominating conversations these days is why people will not get vaccinated in Hong Kong.

How about this reason -- to avoid the long-term health effects after being infected with Covid-19.

A recent study in Hong Kong found almost half of recovered patients still suffer abnormal lung functions, such as shortness of breath, three months after being discharged.

As of April, about 46 percent of the 167 recovered patients at Princess Margaret Hospital in Lai Chi Kok had abnormal levels of oxygen going from their lungs to their bloodstream, three months after medical treatment.

Dr Tsang says exercise can help improve lungs

And nine months after treatment, lung function remained poor for 16.7 percent of the patients.

Dr Owen Tsang Tak-yin, medical director of the Hospital Authority's Infectious Disease Centre, said most of the abnormalities were experienced by elderly and chronically ill patients.

"They may experience shortness of breath while climbing stairs or running after a bus," he said, adding that regular exercise and a balanced diet could help patients improve their lung function over time.

Tsang said 16 percent of the more than 1,300 discharged patients had to undergo pulmonary function tests to show how well the lungs are working.

So far, more than 11,500 people, or 97.6 percent of Hong Kong's Covid-19 patients have been discharged.

The psychological impact of the virus has also left recovered patients stressed and depressed.

In a screening from between February 2020 and April 2021, 190 recovered patients responded, mostly women with the average age of 40.8 years.

Vaccines can prevent serious Covid symptoms

Some reported being worried for burdening others with having to go into government quarantine camps, some felt discriminated by neighbours or people around them, while others were terrified of being infected again and tried to avoid "dirty" places like washrooms. 

More than one-third felt Covid-19 was a threat to their lives, 19 percent suffered depressive symptoms, and 12.1 percent experienced severe anxiety.

The public needs to understand and sympathize with these patients after their traumatic experience, some of them were infected out of no fault of their own.

Not returning to regular lung capacity must be frightening too -- not being able to breathe properly months afterwards, and for how much longer?

And being psychologically scarred by the experience -- are these people getting the counselling they need to try to move on?

Getting infected by the virus is not to be taken lightly, which is why vaccination is so important. While the number of cases is very low in Hong Kong, one can still get infected by an asymptomatic person. Being vaccinated will make one's Covid-19 symptoms milder and easier to recover.

Isn't that the best reason for getting the jab?

But some 80 percent of Hong Kong's population doesn't seem to think so...