Up to 10 per cent of those who have had COVID-19 might have some form of lung damage which leads to prolonged symptoms, say researchers. © Shutterstock
The novel coronavirus can cause devastating effects on different organs, mainly the lungs in serious cases. Many studies have indicated that COVID-19 patients can suffer long-term lung damage, which can lead to prolonged symptoms like breathlessness, coughing and tiredness even after recovery. Even more worrisome is that some form of lung damage may not be detected during standard MR and CT scans.
Using a new scanning technique, Oxford University researchers were able to detect the 'hidden' lung abnormalities caused by the COVID-19 infection. The changes were traceable in COVID-19 patients even three months after the infection, the researchers said, adding that damages were often left undetected during traditional scanning methods.
The new method includes MRI scans that use xenon gas to generate a clear picture of lung damage. It requires the patients to inhale xenon gas during the MRI scan. The technique was developed by researchers at the University of Sheffield in the UK, led by Jim Wild, Professor of Magnetic Resonance Physics.
According to Professor Wild, hyperpolarised xenon MRI offers a unique means of imaging impairment to oxygen uptake in the lungs caused by COVID-19 infection and its after-effects. This method has been found to be very sensitive to this impairment in other fibrotic lung diseases, he said.
Professor Wild is hoping that the method can help understand COVID-19 lung disease too.
Oxford University researchers studied 10 COVID-19 patients aged 19-69 using this new scanning technique. Eight patients suffered from shortness of breath and tiredness three months after COVID-19 infection. However, none of them had received intensive care or ventilation and no lung damage was found during conventional health scans.
The new scans revealed signs of lung damage in these patients by exposing areas where air did not flow easily into the blood.
The 'hidden' lung damage could be a factor behind "long COVID," where people fall ill for months following infection despite seemingly 'normal' results from standard GP and hospital tests, suggested Fergus Gleeson, Professor of Radiology at the University of Oxford, who led the study.
The researchers are now looking to expand the study by including about 100 people who got infected with COVID-19 but were not admitted to hospital and did not suffer serious symptoms. They want to get more clarity on whether lung damage occurs, and if so, its extent and duration.
Prof. Gleeson asserted that if the trial reveals that lung damage occurs across a wide age group and those with minor symptoms, "it would move the goalposts."
Dr. Shelley Hayles, another member of the research team, noted that up to 10 per cent of those who have had COVID-19 might have some form of lung damage which leads to prolonged symptoms.
If the new scanning technique can successfully detect hidden lung damage, it would make a huge difference to COVID-19 patients.
Professor Fergus Gleeson believes that the study may help get an insight into why some patients have symptoms long after they have been discharged from hospital, and when other tests are normal. This in turn can help identify patients that may potentially benefit from treatment like steroids or other therapies even after discharge, he added.
