'Nearly 600,000 people' in UK have had long Covid for at least two years
Nearly 600,000 people in the UK with long Covid are likely to have first contracted the virus at least two years ago, new figures suggest. About 2.2 million people across the country, 3.4 per cent of the population, are currently thought to be suffering from long Covid.
This includes 594,000 who first had Covid-19, or suspected they had the coronavirus, at least 24 months previously. The figures have been published by the Office for National Statistics and are based on self-reported long Covid from a representative sample of people in private households in the four weeks to November 6.Read More : Beijing, Shenzhen loosen more COVID restrictions They show the overall number of people with long Covid is broadly unchanged since the previous survey for the period up to October 1, when the estimated total was 2.1 million.
But the number thought to have had long Covid for at least two years has climbed from 507,000 to 594,000. About 1.2 million people are estimated to have had long Covid for at least a year, up month-on-month from 1.1 million.
There continue to be sharp differences in the prevalence of long Covid among age groups and occupations.
An estimated 5.0 percent (about one in 20) of those aged 50-69 are currently likely to be suffering from long Covid, compared with 4.8 percent of 35 to 49-year-olds, 3.1 percent of 25-34 year-olds, 2.9 percent of people aged 70 and over, and 2.4 percent of 17-24-year-olds.
People working in social care reported the highest prevalence of long Covid among employment groups (6.6 percent), followed by civil servants and local government staff (5.1 percent) and healthcare employees (4.8 percent).
Levels were lower among occupations such as financial services (3.2 percent), farming (3.2 percent) and hospitality (3.4 percent).
Long Covid is likely to be adversely affecting the day-to-day activities of 1.6 million people — three-quarters of those with self-reported long Covid — with 370,000 saying their ability to undertake day-to-day activities has been “limited a lot”, the ONS found.
Fatigue is the most common symptom (experienced by 70 percent of those with long Covid), followed by difficulty concentrating (48 percent), shortness of breath (46 percent) and muscle ache (45 percent).
There is no standard measure for long Covid, with the ONS using a definition based on symptoms that have persisted for more than four weeks after a first suspected coronavirus infection, where the symptoms could not be explained by something else.
This includes 594,000 who first had Covid-19, or suspected they had the coronavirus, at least 24 months previously. The figures have been published by the Office for National Statistics and are based on self-reported long Covid from a representative sample of people in private households in the four weeks to November 6.
But the number thought to have had long Covid for at least two years has climbed from 507,000 to 594,000. About 1.2 million people are estimated to have had long Covid for at least a year, up month-on-month from 1.1 million.
There continue to be sharp differences in the prevalence of long Covid among age groups and occupations.
An estimated 5.0 percent (about one in 20) of those aged 50-69 are currently likely to be suffering from long Covid, compared with 4.8 percent of 35 to 49-year-olds, 3.1 percent of 25-34 year-olds, 2.9 percent of people aged 70 and over, and 2.4 percent of 17-24-year-olds.
People working in social care reported the highest prevalence of long Covid among employment groups (6.6 percent), followed by civil servants and local government staff (5.1 percent) and healthcare employees (4.8 percent).
Levels were lower among occupations such as financial services (3.2 percent), farming (3.2 percent) and hospitality (3.4 percent).
Long Covid is likely to be adversely affecting the day-to-day activities of 1.6 million people — three-quarters of those with self-reported long Covid — with 370,000 saying their ability to undertake day-to-day activities has been “limited a lot”, the ONS found.
Fatigue is the most common symptom (experienced by 70 percent of those with long Covid), followed by difficulty concentrating (48 percent), shortness of breath (46 percent) and muscle ache (45 percent).
There is no standard measure for long Covid, with the ONS using a definition based on symptoms that have persisted for more than four weeks after a first suspected coronavirus infection, where the symptoms could not be explained by something else.
Source: www.thenationalnews.com
