UK Edition
Patients with persistent and severe signs of long Covid are being promised checks within six weeks under NHS plans.
The NHS Long Covid Action plan promises to speed up specialist assessment at 90 clinics across the country.
It follows warnings from NHS leaders that services are already “swamped by demand”.
The new plan means patients suffering severe symptoms with a debilitating impact can be referred for specialist help. It also means they can be sent to mobile clinics and “one stop shops” to undergo tests, instead of having to repeatedly visit their GP, health chiefs said.
Latest estimates from the Office for National Statistics suggest that around 1.6 million people in England are experiencing long Covid, including almost 800,000 suffering for more than a year.
Common symptoms include fatigue, shortness of breath, a cough and muscle aches.
Tasting food can be 'disgusting and distressing'
It comes as research suggests that one in every 20 people who catch Covid have smell or taste problems at least six months later.
Loss or change of sense of smell or taste can suffer "severe distress", academics said as they urged health systems to be prepared to support people who often feel "isolated" when dismissed by clinicians.
They said daily activities such as smelling coffee and testing the flavour of food can become "disgusting and emotionally distressing".
The study, published in The BMJ, reviewed data from 18 studies involving 3,699 patients.
Based on the data, the team of international researchers, including some from the UK, used modelling to estimate how many people go on to suffer from altered taste or smell for at least six months after a Covid infection.
They concluded that an estimated 5.6 per cent of Covid patients suffer smell dysfunction for at least six months and 4.4 per cent have an altered taste.
Women were less likely to recover their sense of smell and taste, they found.
And patients who suffered the most at the initial infection were also more likely to have lasting effects.
In a linked editorial, a team of Italian academics said people "only realise the importance of smell when it is lost" and they can be "severely distressed" when they lose these senses.
"Loss of smell and taste adversely affects quality of life by depriving those affected of several everyday pleasures and social bonds," the team, led by Paolo Boscolo-Rizzo from the University of Trieste, wrote.
"People can also experience anorexia, food aversions, malnutrition, anxiety, and depression," they added.
Extra £90m to tackle long Covid
NHS chiefs have pledged an extra £90 million to tackle long Covid, with plans aiming to reduce the need for a patient to return to their GP for multiple different symptoms.
The money will be used to fund 90 specialist long Covid clinics, 14 hubs for children and young people and investment in training and guidance to support GP teams in managing the condition.
Dr Kiren Collison, GP and chair of the NHS long Covid taskforce said: "Long Covid can be devastating for those living with it, and while we continue to learn more about this new condition, it's important people know they're not alone, and that the NHS is here for them.
"In just under two years, the NHS has invested £224 million to support people experiencing long term effects from Covid - from setting up specialist clinics, hubs for children, and an online recovery platform, to providing training for GP teams.
"Today's plan builds on this world-leading care, to ensure support is there for everyone who needs it, and that patients requiring specialist support can access care in a timely and more convenient way."
In the last year, more than 45,000 people experiencing severe or complex symptoms have been seen by a specialist post-Covid service.
Officials said many of those experiencing long term symptoms will make a full recovery with support from their community healthcare or GP team, with the specialist clinics intended for those suffering from more complex and severe symptoms.
Long Covid clinics offer a comprehensive multidisciplinary service including physical, cognitive and psychological assessments and management and can also refer patients for further rehabilitation, treatment and other support.
Dr Layla McCay, director of policy at the NHS Confederation, said: “Health leaders are very aware that Covid-19 is far from a flash in the pan illness and for many people, it can have a devastating impact on their lives long after the first symptoms.
“Not only does this place additional pressure on already stretched NHS services but the Institute for Fiscal Studies has estimated that it costs £1.5 billion a year in lost earnings and when people are out of work, this can then affect their health and wellbeing further.”
James Morris, the health minister, said: “Long Covid can have lasting and debilitating effects on both the physical and mental health of people of all ages.
“These new measures will ensure individuals with this awful condition can access the support that they need more quickly and closer to home.”