Why Seniors Should be Concerned About Long Covid Symptoms
Scientists may have discovered vaccines to prevent COVID-19 and drugs to treat people who do become infected, but one thing still perplexes them — Long Covid. According to an article by Kaiser Health News, this term refers to symptoms that develop or still exist at least four weeks after a Covid infection. The most common complaints are fatigue, shortness of breath, an elevated heart rate, muscle and joint pain, and sleep disruptions. Many patients also report problems with attention, concentration, language, and memory — a set of difficulties collectively called “brain fog.”
The problem is that many of these issues are also associated with aging. Since there is no diagnostic test to determine Long Covid, many seniors may be suffering in silence. One study in the journal BMJ found that about one-third of older adults in the U.S. who survived Covid infections had symptoms of long covid up to four months after infection — that’s more than double the amount of adults ages 18 to 64. The higher rate of post-Covid symptoms in older adults is likely due to a higher incidence of chronic disease and physical vulnerability in this population.
The Seniors Trust is committed to improving the lives of seniors by working to improve Social Security. It wants to see Congress pass the Social Security Expansion Act. This landmark piece of legislation will provide bigger monthly Social Security benefits, establish a more realistic cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) for seniors, and guarantee the long-term solvency of the Social Security program.
