Health check-up every six months a must after recovery from Covid-19: Doctors

Bengaluru: Recently, 30-year-old acute appendicitis patient was found to have a deep vein thrombosis (DVT) in the abdominal area during the surgery.

Doctors have come across cases wherein it was observed that patients who tested negative for Covid before surgery had DVT. Although the patient claimed he tested Covid negative, the antibodies were high in his body. The internal damage was still found.

City based doctors claim that high levels of antibodies in them make it clear they were infected with Covid but were considered asymptomatic as no observable symptoms were found.

Doctors now have an apprehension that asymptomatic patients are prone to internal damages.

In another case, a patient aged 65 years who was supposed to undergo prostate surgery was reported to have had leg pain. Medical examinations revealed that the patient had DVT in his leg. Prostate surgery was postponed as the doctors say it was impossible to conduct prostate surgery without treating the DVT in his leg.

Dr. Jagadish Hiremath, Medical Director at Ace Suhas Multispeciality Hospital, explained, "The nature of the disease is like that. It affects the blood vessels. Blood vessels are the primary target. The pathogenesis of Covid is that it affects the blood vessels first. This causes thrombosis in Covid patients.

What we see in the lungs is because of the damage of blood vessels in the lungs. Likewise blood vessels are damaged everywhere in the body. Major problems are caused in the area where the blood vessels are damaged. For instance, some patients suffered stroke when the blood vessels in their brain were damaged.

Vast spreads of blood vessels are present in the body. In some cases, the blood vessels are affected in areas where it does not cause any problem to the individual. It doesn't mean that the organ is not damaged. For any person to get symptomatic in lungs, more than 15% to 20% of the lungs must be affected. Individuals look normal when less than 15% of their lungs are affected. In such cases it might go unnoticed."

The duration of treatment for thrombosis varies from 3 weeks to 3 years.

Offering his insight, Hiremath added, "In severe cases a surgery must be done to relieve the obstruction of the veins. Any negligence could lead to amputation of the organ.

Hence, I always advise any individual who has been infected with Covid whether symptomatic or asymptomatic, must undergo health check-up once in six months regardless of their age."