Scientists have found that people who have had infected with Covid-19 have an increased risk of developing serious blood clots for up to six months. A new study by the BMJ medical journal has shown that serious blood clots can last up to six months after getting infected with Covid-19, even in mild cases.
The researchers compared the data from more than one million people in Sweden's national registries who contracted Covid from February 2020 to May 2021, with a control group of over four million who did not test positive.
The researchers have found that those with Covid had a higher risk of pulmonary embolism-a blood clot that blocks arteries in the lungs, up to six months after infection.
Besides, the side effects of Covid-19 are also seen in the legs. The respiratory infection also increases the danger of "Deep Vein Thrombosiis"--which is blood clotting in the legs. This usually lasts up to three months.
People who suffered from severe Covid symptoms along with pre-existing health conditions were more at risk of blood clotting.
But even those who had mild cases, who did not need hospitalisation, had a higher danger of pulmonary embolism and deep vein thrombosis.
The risk of bleeding was almost twice as high for Covid patients in the month after they were infected, while clots called deep vein thrombosis were almost five times higher, the study found. Pulmonary embolism was the greatest risk, with 1,761 events occurring in the 30 days after infection, compared to just 171 among the larger group of people who didn’t contract the virus.
The chance of clotting was higher during the first wave of the pandemic than in later stages, which the researchers said was due to vaccine coverage and better treatments as time went on.
Vaccination may help alleviate the issue of clotting, the researchers said.
