Paul Caine | July 20, 2021 10:10 pm
Many survivors of COVID-19, particularly those who were hospitalized with severe disease, experience long-term symptoms even after being discharged from hospital.
Perhaps the most common problem is a persistent shortness of breath and fatigue.
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You might think that is because of lung damage due to the coronavirus and that certainly does occur but a new study has found that damage to the diaphragm could also be a major cause of those long-term symptoms.
A study of COVID-19 survivors undergoing rehabilitation therapy at the Shirley Ryan AbilityLab has found that damage to the diaphragm the muscle that draws air into the lungs could be a significant factor.
Study implicates diaphragm dysfunction as a potential cause for prolonged COVID-19 impairments
By using a neuromuscular ultrasound technique, US researchers reveal that patients who necessitate inpatient rehabilitation after acute hospitalization due to coronavirus disease (COVID-19) have a very high prevalence of diaphragm dysfunction, which is a major muscle of respiration. The study is currently available on
medRxiv preprint server.
Technique for neuromuscular ultrasound examination of hemi-diaphragm. Image Credit: medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2020.12.10.20244509v1.full.pdf
The significant burden of chronic disability that ensues after a hospital stay as a result of COVID-19 is evident. Recent studies have shown that basically half of all the patients are not able to return to their working duties two months after hospital discharge.