Are the “blue legs” of this patient related to his long Covid? The case that questions the investigators

After tiredness and loss of smell, blue legs? A man, with long-standing Covid, developed an unusual symptom that turned his legs blue, researchers from the University of Leeds reveal, in an article published in the medical journal. the lancet, August 12th. This is the first reported case of its kind in a patient suffering from long-term Covid.

If the link between this symptom and long covid is not currently proven, scientists believe it is likely. So far, the most common symptoms associated with prolonged covid are feeling tired, shortness of breath without effort, a persistent cough or multiple pains. The long Covid also has consequences on the nervous system that regulates blood pressure and heart rate.

We are talking about long Covid when the symptoms persist for more than 4 weeks after the start of the infection, according to Health Insurance.

Heavy legs and tingling sensation.

The 33-year-old patient has been suffering from “rapid purple discolouration” of the legs for six months, according to the scientists who examined him. The phenomenon occurs when the thirty-something stands up.

“(The patient) reported that his legs gradually became heavier, tingling, itchy, and darker in color,” the researchers report.

Sometimes “redness” also appears on his feet. You just need to sit or lie down and the symptoms disappear in a few minutes.

A blood circulation problem

The man has a “striking case of acrocyanosis,” an arterial disease caused by a spasm of small blood vessels in the skin. when “he had not experienced it before his infection by Covid-19”, emphasizes the researcher and co-author of the study Manoj Sivan, in a press release.

For doctor Bruce Hirsch, “many people with long-term Covid have altered the autonomic nervous system” and in some cases “they cannot maintain their vascular tone,” he says in the medical journal. MedPageToday.

The patient was also diagnosed with Postural Tachycardia Syndrome (PoTS), as he suffered from Covid-19. It is a dysautonomia, or a dysfunction of the autonomic nervous system that causes an increase in heart rate, to more than 30 beats per minute, after 10 minutes of standing.

Raising awareness about the disease associated with prolonged Covid

“Patients who experience this may not be aware that (blue legs) are potentially a symptom of long-term covid and dysautonomia,” notes Dr. Manoj Sivan.

“Similarly, doctors may not be aware of the link between acrocyanosis and covid for a long time,” he adds.

“We need to make sure that dysautonomia is better known in long Covid cases so that doctors have the tools they need to manage patients properly,” asks the doctor.