Clinics for patients dealing with long-term symptoms from COVID-19 — estimated to be about 30% of those who contracted the virus — have been set up by Edward-Elmhurst Health in 11 suburbs, including Naperville.
Post-COVID Neuro Care Clinics will provide a new form of care for people experiencing a range of ailments, from headaches and dizziness to “brain fog,” tinnitus and reduced or complete loss of taste and smell.
“The severity (of COVID-19) really isn’t dependent on whether you were hospitalized,” said Samantha Rodriguez, Edward-Elmhurst’s system manager of neurosciences. “You may not have had severe symptoms but it doesn’t mean you may not get manifestations from it that will impact your daily life.”
Members of the hospital system’s neurological team started talking about post-COVID care in the fall as they started seeing people seek help for problems stemming from coronavirus, Rodriguez said.
The clinics are among the first to be established on a community level rather than through an academic program, she said.
Persistent neurological issues stemming from COVID-19 include confusion, difficulty concentrating, muscle pain or aches, headaches or migraines, dizziness, numbness/tingling, loss or changes to taste and/or smell, blurred vision and tinnitus.
These symptoms can emerge even in people who had mild symptoms or were asymptomatic, Rodriguez said.
The one post-COVID issue they have seen most frequently is brain fog, defined as a sense of confusion or difficulty concentrating, she said.
“We’re seeing patients who function at a high level but come to us with complaints that they notice they cannot focus at work or school like they used to and it’s not improving,” Rodriguez said.
Any of the symptoms, however, can have a big effect on someone’s day-to-day life, said Hurmina Muqtadar, an Edward-Elmhurst physician and member of the Post-COVID Neuro Care Clinic team.
“These lingering symptoms can make it difficult to function and can impact your daily life, work and relationships,” Muqtadar said in a news release announcing the new clinics.
The team consists of 12 neurologists, one whom will be assigned to each patient and charged with determining a course of treatment, Rodriguez said.
Treatment will vary by patient and may consist of medication, neurological or cognitive assessments, supportive therapies, lifestyle recommendations and/or referrals to other medical specialists, like cardiologists or physical therapists, she said.
“We’ve taken a team approach to the clinic. Even though it’s a group of neurologists, we’re meeting with specialists across all of our specialties to figure out the best care,” Rodriguez said.
“What we found in our research is we can’t provide one path to treatment. Patients come with with so many different symptoms, so we’ll try to individualize the treatment.”
They started booking appointments earlier this week, she said. In addition to Naperville, there are clinics in Addison, Bolingbrook, Crest Hill, Elmhurst, Hinsdale, Oak Park, Oswego, Plainfield, Warrenville and Yorkville.
To make an appointment, call 630-527-7730, choose option 1 and mention the Post-COVID Neuro Care Clinic or use Edward-Elmhurst Health’s MyChart online platform. More information can be found at eehealth.org/postcovidclinic.
“We anticipate over the next year we will see as significant number of patients who haven’t received care for these manifestations,” Rodriguez said. “But as vaccination rates increase, we should see less patients. … It’s definitely a clinic where we don’t want to see the number of patients continue to grow.”
As of Wednesday morning, only six patients were hospitalized for COVID-19 at Edward Hospital in Naperville or Elmhurst Hospital.
DuPage is in the top 2% of all U.S. counties for the highest number of vaccinated residents, the county health department reported this week.
raguerrero@tribpub.com
