Dear Editor
As a patient with severe long covid and myalgic encephalomyelitis (M.E.), I was pleased to see the article ‘What happens in a long covid clinic?’ [1] raising awareness of the scale and impact of long covid and the importance of long covid clinics. According to a recent estimate by Altmann et al, 1 in 10 people who contract COVID-19 will be affected by long covid, whilst the oncoming impact of long covid on health systems, populations and economies will be “so large as to be unfathomable”.[2]
Around 2-14% of patients with long covid develop orthostatic tachycardia six to eight months after COVID infection and as many as 60% show some symptoms of POTS. [3] Yet there remain no agreed guidelines for POTS in long covid, making the early diagnosis and management of the condition in primary care challenging. NICE guidance on long covid only mentions POTS in passing with no information on management.[4] The approach outlined by Espinosa-Gonzalez and colleagues to diagnose and manage POTS in primary care could greatly improve function and health for people with POTS.[5]
While I commend the excellent NHS services highlighted in the feature [1], as a patient with severe long covid I would question how prevalent this integrated medically-led care model is across the country despite it being in the ‘The NHS plan for improving long covid services’.[6] Many patients I speak to in long covid support groups report long waits, only to then be offered basic wellbeing classes or rehabilitation without any active treatment for symptoms.
Access to clinics for the most severely affected is variable with not all services offering remote consultations or home visits. It is imperative that long covid clinics are medically led, inter-disciplinary and able to prescribe medications. Additionally, we need the same standard of care for patients with ME/CFS, who are still waiting for NICE guidance from 2021[7] to be implemented. A recent survey noted there remain significant gaps in provision for patients with ME/CFS.[8]
Previously young fit and healthy patients with severe long covid and ME are being left bed-bound without adequate diagnosis, support, care or treatment as there is no specialty or service that is set up to provide this. I went from climbing mountains and working on-call to unable to stand or feed myself in the space of 8 weeks with long covid – I am still severely affected a year later. Given the multi-system complexity of long covid and ME/CFS it is time for an interdisciplinary patient-centred service for post-viral illnesses that recognises the biological nature of the disease and the unique challenges patients with severe long covid and ME have with safely accessing services given their limited energy available, severe cognitive effects, physical immobility and range of complications across bodily systems.
The Department of Health and Social Care are currently seeking views on the interim delivery plan for ME/CFS care in an online consultation [9], which is relevant to both patient groups and professionals and could lay the groundwork for more comprehensive care of post-viral illnesses in the UK.
Yours sincerely,
Dr Alexis Gilbert BSc MBBS MPH FFPH
Source: MJ 2023;382:p1791 https://www.bmj.com/content/382/bmj.p1791/rr (Full text)