Long Covid may have hit 1 million people in Thailand, survey shows

Researcher Thira Woratanarat said the number of reinfections has significantly surged thanks to the highly transmissible Omicron variant.

Hence, he said, people need to take steps to protect themselves and pay no attention to fake news and claims that Covid-19 is like normal flu.

Research shows that there is a 20 to 40 per cent chance of people who have recovered from Covid-19 to develop long-term health problems or long-Covid, such as inflammation of certain organs or gastrointestinal problems, etc.

Long Covid can range from mild to severe and may hit both asymptomatic people as well as those with severe symptoms. It is believed that women face a greater risk of long Covid.

According to Brookings Metro, a US-based policy tracker, long Covid will mostly affect people of working age and subsequently create labour shortages.

As many as 2.5 million people in Thailand have been infected by Covid-19, and it is estimated that up to 40 per cent of them have developed long Covid.