Delhi government to send oxygen concentrators to homes of Covid patients after they recover.
Home Minister Amit Shah who tested negative for coronavirus last week was admitted to AIIMS last night. After being discharged from Medanta Hospital in Gurugram, Mr Shah was seen taking part in the Independence Day celebrations and hoisting the national flag at his official residence. But the hospital, in its statement, said he has been "complaining of fatigue and body ache for last three-four days".
The minister is not alone when it comes to post-covid health issues. The Rajiv Gandhi Super Specialty hospital run by the Delhi government will start a post-covid clinic from today to provide support to patients who have recovered from the virus.
Dr BL Sherwal, Medical Director of the hospital told NDTV: "There are different types of complaints. Some patients are saying that they have cough or are feeling fatigue and facing low saturation levels. These patients are of varying age groups and both males and females have such complaints."
On Saturday, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal said there have been instances where some patients lost their lives because their oxygen levels dropped, even after testing negative and going home fully recovered.
The government has now planned to send oxygen concentrators to the homes of coronavirus patients even after their recovery.
Former Union Minister and Rajya Sabha MP, KJ Alphons said his 91-year-old mother was perfectly healthy until Covid struck. She was confirmed Covid-positive on May 28. She recovered and tested negative twice, but soon after died of a heart attack on June 11.
"Unfortunately what happens in Covid is that you get cured but it eats up your entire system. My mother's lungs collapsed. Her heart had a seizure. She survived the first but on the 11th she had a second seizure," KJ Alphons told NDTV. "Even though you get cured very often you may not survive because it destroys your vital organs and it can have long-term effects."
At some hospitals in Mumbai, upto 40 per cent patients are returning with Lung Fibrosis, a disease that has symptoms like breathlessness and dry cough.
Dr Gautam Bhansali of Bombay Hospital said, "Patients are returning with fibriotic lungs almost a month after testing negative. We conduct an X-Ray then CT scan, and then the lung fibrosis gets diagnosed. Thirty to forty per cent patients are suffering from it."
Dr Deepesh Agarwal of Saifi Hospital said, "ICU patients are returning in two weeks and ward patients in a month. They have swelled-up lungs, fatigue. All signs of lung fibrosis. Some are coming with heart problems also."