COVID May Cause Restless Anal Syndrome
Sept 30, 2021 20:44:38 GMT -5
Post by bloodbought on Sept 30, 2021 20:44:38 GMT -5
COVID May Cause Restless Anal Syndrome (Just When You Thought COVID Couldn't Get Any Weirder)
BY PAULA BOLYARD SEP 30, 2021 4:33 PM ET
As if the world didn’t have enough to worry about right now, researchers are reporting another odd COVID-19 symptom: Restless anal syndrome (RAS). I kid you not.
A case report at the Japanese journal BMC Infectious Diseases described the symptoms:
Although a 77-year-old male with COVID-19 improved to normal respiratory function 21 days after admission and treatment of favipiravir 200 mg per day for 14 days and dexamethasone 6.6 mg per day for 5 days, the insomnia and anxiety symptoms remained. Several weeks after discharge, he gradually began to experience restless, deep anal discomfort, approximately 10 cm from the perineal region. The following features were observed in the anal region; urge to move is essential, with worsening with rest, improvement with exercise, and worsening at evening.
Leaving aside the (probably unintentional) “discharge” pun, this sounds like an incredibly uncomfortable condition. A colonoscopy revealed that the patient had internal hemorrhoids, but no other abnormalities and no other health problems that would account for the condition.
The patient had never experienced anal restlessness or discomfort prior to his COVID-19 infection, but several weeks after discharge from the hospital, “he gradually began to experience restless, deep anal discomfort, approximately 10 cm from the perineal region,” his doctors said. “This restless anal discomfort did not improve following defecation.”
Walking and running and “enthusiastically playing the television game” (!?) gave the poor man some relief, but resting exacerbated the condition, which tended to worsen in the evening. Treatment with 1.5 mg of Clonazepam per day—a common treatment for restless leg syndrome (RLS)—gave the patient some relief.
“Because he had never experienced anal restless and discomfort before affecting [sic] COVID-19 and the anal restless symptom developed after COVID-19, we considered that these anal restless symptoms were suggested the COVID-19 related syndrome,” the report said.
Doctors believe the condition could be a variant of restless leg syndrome, as it shares the same four essential characteristics: urge to move, worsening with rest, improvement with exercise, and worsening at night.
This is the first documented case of RAS related to COVID-19, although there is also a documented case of post-COVID RLS. The researchers caution that the “causative relation” between COVID and RLS/RAS “remains unclear.”
“COVID-19 related RLS or RLS variant may be underdiagnosed and we should pay attention to similar cases in order to clarify… relation between COVID-19 and RLS,” the researchers say.
The Mayo Clinic lists a whole host of possible long-term COVID symptoms, including:
Fatigue
Shortness of breath or difficulty breathing
Cough
Joint pain
Chest pain
Memory, concentration or sleep problems
Muscle pain or headache
Fast or pounding heartbeat
Loss of smell or taste
Depression or anxiety
Fever
Dizziness when you stand
Worsened symptoms after physical or mental activities
There have also been reports of organ damage, blood clots, and long-term memory problems post-COVID.
Continued at link
BY PAULA BOLYARD SEP 30, 2021 4:33 PM ET
As if the world didn’t have enough to worry about right now, researchers are reporting another odd COVID-19 symptom: Restless anal syndrome (RAS). I kid you not.
A case report at the Japanese journal BMC Infectious Diseases described the symptoms:
Although a 77-year-old male with COVID-19 improved to normal respiratory function 21 days after admission and treatment of favipiravir 200 mg per day for 14 days and dexamethasone 6.6 mg per day for 5 days, the insomnia and anxiety symptoms remained. Several weeks after discharge, he gradually began to experience restless, deep anal discomfort, approximately 10 cm from the perineal region. The following features were observed in the anal region; urge to move is essential, with worsening with rest, improvement with exercise, and worsening at evening.
Leaving aside the (probably unintentional) “discharge” pun, this sounds like an incredibly uncomfortable condition. A colonoscopy revealed that the patient had internal hemorrhoids, but no other abnormalities and no other health problems that would account for the condition.
The patient had never experienced anal restlessness or discomfort prior to his COVID-19 infection, but several weeks after discharge from the hospital, “he gradually began to experience restless, deep anal discomfort, approximately 10 cm from the perineal region,” his doctors said. “This restless anal discomfort did not improve following defecation.”
Walking and running and “enthusiastically playing the television game” (!?) gave the poor man some relief, but resting exacerbated the condition, which tended to worsen in the evening. Treatment with 1.5 mg of Clonazepam per day—a common treatment for restless leg syndrome (RLS)—gave the patient some relief.
“Because he had never experienced anal restless and discomfort before affecting [sic] COVID-19 and the anal restless symptom developed after COVID-19, we considered that these anal restless symptoms were suggested the COVID-19 related syndrome,” the report said.
Doctors believe the condition could be a variant of restless leg syndrome, as it shares the same four essential characteristics: urge to move, worsening with rest, improvement with exercise, and worsening at night.
This is the first documented case of RAS related to COVID-19, although there is also a documented case of post-COVID RLS. The researchers caution that the “causative relation” between COVID and RLS/RAS “remains unclear.”
“COVID-19 related RLS or RLS variant may be underdiagnosed and we should pay attention to similar cases in order to clarify… relation between COVID-19 and RLS,” the researchers say.
The Mayo Clinic lists a whole host of possible long-term COVID symptoms, including:
Fatigue
Shortness of breath or difficulty breathing
Cough
Joint pain
Chest pain
Memory, concentration or sleep problems
Muscle pain or headache
Fast or pounding heartbeat
Loss of smell or taste
Depression or anxiety
Fever
Dizziness when you stand
Worsened symptoms after physical or mental activities
There have also been reports of organ damage, blood clots, and long-term memory problems post-COVID.
Continued at link