New sickness going around
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New Sickness Going Around: Acute Infectious Lymphocytosis and COVID-19 Impacts
Acute Infectious Lymphocytosis: Symptoms and Characteristics
Mild Symptoms and Lymphocyte Increase
A new contagious disease, termed acute infectious lymphocytosis, has been identified with symptoms so mild that they may often go unnoticed. The primary characteristic of this disease is a significant increase in lymphocytes, a type of white blood cell, in the blood. Despite the increase, these cells are not abnormal.
Associated Symptoms
Patients may experience fever, vomiting, and pain in the back of the head and neck, or abdominal pain that can be mistaken for appendicitis. However, these symptoms are typically short-lived, lasting only a few days. In some cases, individuals may only exhibit symptoms akin to a mild cold.
Demographics and Recovery
The disease predominantly affects young children, who generally recover fully. The cause of acute infectious lymphocytosis is suspected to be viral, although it has not been definitively identified.
COVID-19 Pandemic: Changing Patterns of Sickness Absence
Overall Sickness Absence Trends
During the initial 10 weeks of the COVID-19 pandemic (March-May 2020), there was a notable decrease in overall sickness absence among National Health Service (NHS) employees in England, with a reduction of more than 20% compared to the same period in 2019. This analysis excluded episodes directly related to COVID-19.
Specific Illness Categories
Despite the overall reduction, certain categories of illness saw significant increases. Notably, there was a 122% rise in asthma cases, a 283% increase in infectious diseases, and a 42.3% rise in mental illness. Conversely, there were reductions in gastrointestinal problems (48.4%), genitourinary/gynaecological disorders (33.8%), eye problems (42.7%), and several other categories.
Pregnancy-Related Disorders
A specific concern was the doubling of new absences for pregnancy-related disorders from mid-May to mid-July 2020, particularly among women who had previously experienced COVID-19 sickness absence. This highlights potential long-term impacts of COVID-19 on pregnancy and necessitates further research.
Conclusion
The emergence of acute infectious lymphocytosis, primarily affecting children with mild symptoms, and the significant shifts in sickness absence patterns during the COVID-19 pandemic underscore the dynamic nature of public health challenges. While acute infectious lymphocytosis appears to be a manageable condition with full recovery in children, the varied impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on different illness categories, including mental health and pregnancy-related disorders, call for ongoing attention and research to address these evolving health issues.
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