Assessing the Risk of Stroke in the Elderly in the Context of Long-COVID, Followed Through the Lens of Family Medicine

Abstract

Background/aim: Patients infected with COVID-19 may experience a range of acute and chronic neurological disorders. While severe neurological complications like strokes and seizures were less common during the acute or post-COVID period, the long-term effects of COVID-19, known as long COVID, have received limited attention. This study aimed to examine the lasting consequences of SARS-CoV-2 infection and establish potential connections with related diseases.

Patients and methods: We followed a group of 157 patients for one year, predominantly from urban areas (61.8%), divided into three groups based on the presence of associated diseases that pose health risks: the control (43 patients), low-risk (67 patients), and high-risk (47 patients) groups.

Results: We observed an inverse relationship between oxygen saturation and erythrocyte sedimentation rate, as well as a direct relationship between varicose disease and dyslipidemia, and gastrointestinal disease. Additionally, we noticed a less significant improvement in oxygen saturation and increased prevalence of psychoanxiety disorders in individuals undergoing anticoagulant treatment.

Conclusion: The impact of long COVID and its secondary effects, which persist for an extended period and are influenced by associated diseases, can be effectively monitored and addressed by primary care physicians. These findings can serve as a basis for developing more efficient approaches to managing the long-term consequences of COVID-19.

Keywords: Long-COVID; elderly people; stroke; thrombosis.