Case Report: Long COVID plus Long Vax - 58 year old female
Severe Fatigue, Visual Disturbance and Ataxia (Difficulty Walking)
Our Patient's Story
"In February of 2020 I got really sick, I thought I had a bad flu. I mostly got better but by March I was fatigued and in a brain fog. The pandemic hit and work switched to remote. I was spending long hours on zoom and computers. My eyes were really tired, I was exhausted, and my back started hurting from all the sitting.
"In April 2021 I got the COVID vaccine. I had a terrible reaction. My brain fog increased along with confusion and vision issues. And my back pain got much worse. I am an athletic person and all through lock down I kept trying to get back to exercising but my exhaustion and back pain kept me from doing much at all. In December 2022 I got the booster, and everything fell apart. My back blew up with pain and I became ataxic.
"By March 2023 the wheels fell off the wagon. I really lost it. I could hardly walk. I was in so much pain, I couldn’t sit or stand for more than 5 minutes, my balance was worse than ever, I had trouble controlling my right leg and foot. Cortisone injections and 3 rounds of PT were no help. And I was increasingly off balance.
"Over the next 6 months my vision became blurry and I started seeing double. I couldn’t focus to read. I became confused and unable to start or complete tasks, process information or follow sequences. The fatigue was punishing. I was unable to go into stores or be around people because of sensory overwhelm from lights and noise, and just simple conversation.
"Finally in October 2023 I went on medical leave. I saw many doctors through this time. Some were good, some were awful. They told me I probably had degenerative cerebellar syndrome causing ataxia, poor balance, blurry/double vision, and nystagmus (rapid uncontrolled eye movements). This was a scary diagnosis. No one had an explanation for the fatigue, confusion and brain fog. No one mentioned Long COVID or Long Vax.
"I found my way to Lydian Chiropractic in December 2023, and four months later I am thrilled to say, I am on my way to recovery. My back pain and fatigue are all gone, I can walk almost normally, I can travel, and I am beginning to be able to read again. More than 4 years after getting COVID, and 3 years after getting the vaccine, I am finally getting better." "Cindy" age 58
"In February of 2020 I got really sick, I thought I had a bad flu. I mostly got better but by March I was fatigued and in a brain fog. The pandemic hit and work switched to remote. I was spending long hours on zoom and computers. My eyes were really tired, I was exhausted, and my back started hurting from all the sitting.
"In April 2021 I got the COVID vaccine. I had a terrible reaction. My brain fog increased along with confusion and vision issues. And my back pain got much worse. I am an athletic person and all through lock down I kept trying to get back to exercising but my exhaustion and back pain kept me from doing much at all. In December 2022 I got the booster, and everything fell apart. My back blew up with pain and I became ataxic.
"By March 2023 the wheels fell off the wagon. I really lost it. I could hardly walk. I was in so much pain, I couldn’t sit or stand for more than 5 minutes, my balance was worse than ever, I had trouble controlling my right leg and foot. Cortisone injections and 3 rounds of PT were no help. And I was increasingly off balance.
"Over the next 6 months my vision became blurry and I started seeing double. I couldn’t focus to read. I became confused and unable to start or complete tasks, process information or follow sequences. The fatigue was punishing. I was unable to go into stores or be around people because of sensory overwhelm from lights and noise, and just simple conversation.
"Finally in October 2023 I went on medical leave. I saw many doctors through this time. Some were good, some were awful. They told me I probably had degenerative cerebellar syndrome causing ataxia, poor balance, blurry/double vision, and nystagmus (rapid uncontrolled eye movements). This was a scary diagnosis. No one had an explanation for the fatigue, confusion and brain fog. No one mentioned Long COVID or Long Vax.
"I found my way to Lydian Chiropractic in December 2023, and four months later I am thrilled to say, I am on my way to recovery. My back pain and fatigue are all gone, I can walk almost normally, I can travel, and I am beginning to be able to read again. More than 4 years after getting COVID, and 3 years after getting the vaccine, I am finally getting better." "Cindy" age 58
Patient-Reported Outcome Measures
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Long COVID Symptoms
The Modified Yorkshire Rehabilitation Scale is a patient survey developed specifically to measure Long COVID symptoms. It has two primary scores. The symptom severity score measures a cluster of 10 common Long COVID symptoms, including respiratory problems, pain, fatigue, cognitive/memory problems, anxiety and depression, post-exertional malaise, and sleep issues. The functional disability score measures how Long COVID affects activities of daily living. The Yorkshire also includes an additional list of other symptoms that are less common. Here we report our patient's symptom severity, functional disability, and other symptom scores as percentages of their theoretical maximums. Our patient's Long COVID symptom severity went from 80% to 3%, functional disability from 87% to 13%, and other symptoms from 52% to 12% of theoretical maximums, after 32 visits. |
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FACIT Fatigue Scale
The FACIT Fatigue Scale is a 13-question survey that is designed so its scores correspond to the fatigue levels of the U.S. adult population (50th percentile is average). Our patient's FACIT fatigue score declined from the 94th percentile to the 38th percentile relative to the U.S. adult population, after 32 visits. |
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MFSI-SF Fatigue Scale
The Multidimensional Fatigue Symptom Inventory - Short Form (MFSI-SF) is a patient questionnaire that measures 5 different aspects of fatigue (general, mental, emotional, physical and vigor), and also gives a total score. We report the total score for our patient here, expressed as a percentage of the theoretical maximum total score. Our patient's MFSI-SF fatigue total score declined from 69 (which is 78% of the theoretical maximum) at baseline, to -7 (14% of maximum) after 32 visits. |
Oswestry Disability Index (Low Back Pain)
The Oswestry Disability Index measures the effect of low back pain on normal daily activities. Our patient's Oswestry low back disability score decreased from 60 (severe disability) at baseline, to 6 (no disability) after 17 visits.
The Oswestry Disability Index measures the effect of low back pain on normal daily activities. Our patient's Oswestry low back disability score decreased from 60 (severe disability) at baseline, to 6 (no disability) after 17 visits.
Physical Exertion Data
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Sit-to-Stand Test
The Sit-to-Stand Test is a simple test of how may times a person can stand up from a chair and sit back down again in 1 minute. It is recommended as a way to measure a patient's capacity for physical exertion after COVID-19. Our patient went from being able to stand up 13 times in a minute at baseline, to standing up 29 times in a minute after 32 visits. |
Heart Rate Variability Data
Heart rate variability (HRV) is an indicator of autonomic nervous system function. We measured our patient's HRV at baseline, after 11 visits and after 17 visits. Her HRV was low at baseline, and increased at each data collection interval. RMSSD, another measure of heart function, also increased. These increases may suggest a broader increase in our patient's resiliency over the course of her treatment.
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