Coronavirus second wave:new lasting

symptoms that appeared in the second

wave
Dr Arpana Hazarika,Asso prof physiology

1New lasting symptoms that appeared in the second wave

The second wave of the coronavirus has been different from the first one in many ways. It

claimed more lives, was more infectious and had lasting effects post COVID
recoverySymptoms like dry cough, fever and breathlessness were identical in both cases,
but therewere also a few, far more consequential additions in the second one. Eye
infections, hearing problems and black fungus infection were the most prominent ones
that turnedoutto be more challenging for experts to handle.

As the second wave continues texperts speculate on the challenges of a third wave, here
are some peculiar features and symptoms which made the second wave more challenging
than the first time around..
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2Symptoms: First vs second

Fever, dry cough, fatigue were primary symptoms of infection in both cases of
coronavirus. Apart from that, in the second one, problems like eye infection, hearing
problems, and loose motion also flared up. One of the major concerns of the second wave
of the coronavirus was fungal infection that was diagnosed in the patient recovered from
COVID-19. Many states in India witnessed a surge in the black fungal cases among those
on steroids and had uncontrolled diabetes. Later on, several other types of fungal
infections were reported including yellow, white and green.

The symptoms of the first wave of coronavirus were believed to be more like flu.
However, there were some signs in the second one that were totally unrelated to the
respiratory issues and has still been an unsolved mystery for all the experts.
Gastrointestinal issues, ear problems are some of the issues that affect many in the latter
one.
R 3Difference in the age groups affected
At the beginning of the pandemic, older adults were more at risk of getting infected. The
rate of infection was less among adults between 25-50 years. Kids were only considered
as the carrier of the virus and were infected only in rare cases.

However, in the second wave of the coronavirus caused mainly by the Delta variant,
everyone was equally at risk. A large number of adults were infected and even lost their
lives. Kids were also not safe and experienced mild symptoms. Many kids even witnessed
post-COVID symptoms like multisystem inflammatory syndrome or pediatric
inflammatory multisystem syndrome (PIMS). But the mortality rate was low among kids.

4Severity
A study carried out in North India to understand the severity of the coronavirus revealed
that the infection led to more severity in the second wave as compared to the first one.
More people were hospitalised after infection complaining about breathlessness and evthe

mortality rate was high among younger people.

The researchers collected data of over 14,000 (first wave) and 15,000 (second wave)
patients suffering from COVID from 10 hospitals to compare the pattern of the
infectiousness. It was revealed that severe cases accounted for 39.4 per cent of the
patients in the second wave, compared to 32.7 per cent in the first one. Moreover,
patients suffering from comorbidities such as diabetes, hypertension and chronic kidney
disease were also more affected in the second one. More patients were kept on oxygen
support for days after being admitted to the hospital due to complaints of breathlessness.
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5Rise in post- COVID complications

Even the symptoms post-infection stayed longer in the cases caused by the Delta variant.
Prolonged fatigue, brain fog and neuromuscular complications were common complaints

among people which lingered for more than months after a negative RT-PCR test. Not
only these, many people were even hospitalised for the second time after infection due to
long COVID related symptoms. The pattern was more prominent among those who were
on ventilation. Some non-severe symptoms included dry mouth, skin rashes and
headache.