A Question & Answer Session with Dr. Bryan Cepedoza
(Part 2)
The Bohol Tribune (TBT): Dr. Bryan, a friend is asking what is this long covid lung cancer all about?
Dr. Bryan Cepedoza (DBC): The person might be experiencing what we call as long covid and at the same time, another diagnosis for him is lung cancer.
TBT: Once one has long covid, does it mean to say that he will have that forever for as long as he lives?
DBC: There are those whose long covid experience will be lost. However, there are those who, until now, are still having the symptoms of long covid although these symptoms are slowly diminishing.
TBT: Will you please explain again the nature of long covid?
DBC: There are people who have been infected with the virus that causes COVID-19 and can experience long-term effects from the infection. These long term effects are called symptoms of long covid. For example, one has been infected with the virus and a few weeks after, is declared virus free. However, despite the negative results of the test for the virus, the person continues to have cough and colds. Or the person still suffers from the shortness of breath and feels always tired. These are some of the symptoms of long covid. Another symptom is being forgetful. If a person tends to always forget, kanang gitawag nato ug sige ug limot-limot, this is a symptom of long covid.
TBT: So what should a person do if he has the symptoms of long covid like he always feels tired, experiences shortness of breath with persistent cough and colds?
DBC: It depends on the symptoms. If the person has a predominant symptom of always feeling weak and tired, we have what we call as pulmonary rehab. This will tell us to bring the patient to the hospital and subject himself to a specialist who will let the patient undergo a series of exercise in order to bring back the normal energy of the patient. It should be noted that most of those patients who easily experience shortness of breath caused by long covid, have to submit themselves to the rehab. Kasagaran man gud aning mga dali hangakon, ang function sa baga ni bagsak gyud kaayo mao gamay lihok kapoyon na kaayo sila.
TBT: Here is another case doc of a caller who is asking about tuberculosis of the lungs. The caller said that her husband was diagnosed for tuberculosis of the lungs. Are there other kinds of tuberculosis aside from tuberculosis of the lungs. If a person has tuberculosis of the lungs, should this person be isolated from the rest of the members of the family?
DBC: Yes, there is tuberculosis of the lungs. There is what we call as TBD. What is TBD. This is tuberculosis bacterially diagnosed. The phlegh of the person with TBD is bacterially positive and is very contagious. When a person has TBD, he has to be isolated from the rest and should immediately be seen by a doctor for medication. After two (2) weeks of medication, the patient has to go back to the doctor for another test to find out if his phlegm is already negative of the bacteria. In this situation, the patient does not anymore need to be isolated because he is not anymore contagious.
TBT: Is it true Dr. Bryan that tuberculosis nowadays is not as dangerous as it used to be?
DBC: It is still dangerous but it is curable because medicines are now available to fight it. (To be continued)