Heal Covid-19 sequelae

Their family has 5 F0, including the mother who is over 80 years old, the man and his wife and two younger siblings.

When the quarantine ended in early September, when he returned home and received news that his mother had passed away, the man was deeply shocked and fell even more guilty, blaming himself for being unfilial and not being able to organize his mother’s funeral.

`Patients have pre-existing psychological damage, Covid-19 and its post-Covid-19 sequelae are the last straw, causing the inferiority complex to flare up violently,` said Mr. Tran Quang Trong (specialist in the Department of Clinical Psychology, Clinical Psychology).

According to Mr. Trong, initially, when his child took him to the Physical Therapy and Psychotherapy Rehabilitation Center after Covid-19 infection at Le Van Thinh Hospital, the patient was quite withdrawn.

Here, he practiced physical therapy with breathing exercises, mobility exercises, massage, neck treatment to help breathing easier, and psychological therapy.

After two weeks of active treatment, he was refreshed, more steadfast in his movements, and could drive from his home in District 9 to the center in District 2. In particular, he slept about 5 hours a night without needing to sleep.

Ms. Le Thi Thu Huong, 70 years old, living in District 1 is also one of dozens of `former F0` practicing outpatient physical therapy here.

Watching the news online, knowing that the center was opening on September 24, her son drove her there and signed up to practice right away.

Technician Thai Trung Nguyen is instructing Ms. Huong to practice coordinated breathing.

According to Doctor Nguyen Thanh Sang, Director of the Center for Physical Therapy and Psychotherapy Rehabilitation after Covid-19 infection, physical and mental sequelae after Covid-19 infection are no longer a new concept.

The center’s preliminary statistics show that all ages can be affected after Covid-19.

`Symptoms in the acute phase tend to last more than 4 weeks, even months. Without timely medical intervention, patients are susceptible to depression, serious health deterioration, and affecting their quality of life.

Although post-Covid-19 treatment is very practical, medical facilities face difficulties when few units have specialized recovery centers, and there is a lack of consensus among associations of countries.

In addition, the facilities are being requisitioned from an educational institution, with enough equipment but not fixed or synchronous.

Doctor Sang recommends that after discharge from the hospital, if F0s have symptoms such as fatigue, headaches, insomnia, musculoskeletal pain, chest tightness, difficulty breathing… they should go to medical facilities for diagnosis.

`Patients will receive health insurance at the right level and through different levels according to regulations, just like other common diseases,` Dr. Sang affirmed.

As of October 6, Ho Chi Minh City recorded more than 403,000 cases of Covid-19, the Ministry of Health announced.