Long Covid: Experts seek classification as 'occupational illness' in 2 million cases in the UK

A year ago, the vast majority of cases tested positive.

According to data, approximately 2 million people in the UK have self-reported post-acute sequelae SARS-CoV-2 infection (PASC), also known as Long Covid.

Long Covid is a condition wherein COVID-19 symptoms like shortness of breath, fatigue, and muscle aches, last more than 4 weeks after testing positive. According to data from the country's Office for National Statistics (ONS) through May 1, 2022, the majority of self-reported Long Covid cases — 826,000, or 42 percent —  had or assumed they had COVID-19 almost a year earlier.

Approximately 376,000 -19 percent of these cases tested positive at least 2 years ago, according to ONS data. Prior to the dominance of the alpha variant and during the omicron wave, the trend was similar. 593,000 -30%, had or assumed they had COVID-19 prior to the alpha wave, while 619,000 -31% percent, became infected during the omicron wave.

The ONS recorded figures of 239,000 (12%) and 427,000 (21%), respectively, during the alpha and delta waves. According to the ONS, the 2 million figure represents a 10% rise in the number of self-reported Long Covid cases recorded in the previous month and is more than double what was reported a year ago in May 2021, when approximately 1 million people lived with this condition.

The committee noted:

People aged 35 to 69, women, people in poorer areas, people in social care, education and teaching, or medical services, and people with limiting health and handicap had the highest proportion of self-reported Long Covid in the UK population.

The most common sign among Long Covid patients is fatigue, which affects 55% of them. This is followed by breathlessness (32%), cough (23%), and muscle pains (23%). (23 percent ). (Twenty-three percent). (Thirty-three percent) (33% of the total) (approximately 33% of the total)

According to the data, such signs have "adversely affected" the everyday life of 1.4 million of the 2 million people who live with Long Covid. The rest of the group had a more relaxed attitude toward "significantly limited" daily activities.

This was the trend for the last year: On May,21, 674,000 of the 1.1 million individuals living with Long Covid experienced negative effects in their everyday lives.

According to the body, the estimates in this analysis are based on self-reported Long Covid as reported by participants who completed a survey, rather than medically diagnosed, ongoing symptomatic COVID-19 or post-COVID-19 syndrome in the general population.

Long Covid is still unknown to us, but these discoveries suggest that and it's here to stay. According to 

On May 9, 2022, the Bank of England issued some disheartening findings. Since the fourth quarter of 2019, the number of persons aged 16 to 64 who are unemployed and do not want to work has increased by 525,000. Long-term illnesses, such as Long Covid, are to blame for 320,000 of them.

Layla Moran, MP for Oxford West and Abingdon, believes it is critical to classify Long Covid as an occupational illness as soon as possible, to provide guidance to employers, and to allocate funds for treatment and research.