A new dashboard has been launched to track Long COVID cases using Johns Hopkins and U.S. census data.
The Post-Acute Sequelae of SARS-CoV-2 (PASC or Long COVID) infection dashboard will show state and county level statistics and trends with the goal of providing data to healthcare decision-makers, according to its creator, the American Academy of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation (AAPM&R).
“Our dashboard is an important tool to help estimate and assess the growing population of people with Long COVID and help hospitals, clinics and healthcare professionals across the country prepare and plan for their care,” said Steven Flanagan, M.D., of New York University Grossman School of Medicine, medical director of Rusk Rehabilitation at NYU-Langone Health and vice president of AAPM&R.
It is estimated that 3 to 10 million Americans are currently experiencing symptoms of Long COVID, a syndrome with varying symptoms that lingers in some patients after the SARS-CoV-2 infection is gone, AAPM&R reported. These may include neurological challenges, cognitive problems such as brain fog, shortness of breath, fatigue, pain and mobility issues.
In March, the organization called for a national plan to address Long COVID and published a peer-reviewed guidance statement to help clinicians assess and treat fatigue in these patients.
“We need to better understand how many people have Long COVID and where those populations are located to ensure we have the appropriate resources and infrastructure to support them,” AAPM&R said in a Tuesday statement.
