A group of experts have published a series of guidelines for managing the effects of "long-Covid" in Scotland.

Sign, Nice and the Royal College of General Practitioners (RCGP) set out their guidance on Friday - which includes recommendations to provide extra support and raise awareness to help improve access to care, as well as more proactive follow-up of people from vulnerable groups.

Safia Qureshi, director of evidence for Healthcare Improvement Scotland, said: “The publication of today’s guideline is an important stage in making sure that people who are experiencing long-term effects from Covid-19 get the right care and support that they need.

“We appreciate how difficult it must be for people to face so much uncertainty with this condition and the significant impact it can have on people’s quality of life.

“We will update the guideline as new evidence emerges to ensure that patients and the clinical community can access the most up-to-date information on best practice and treatment options.

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“We have also produced a version of this guideline for patients, to explain about the care they can expect to receive.

“We would encourage the clinical community to read the guideline and for the research community to embrace the research recommendations, which highlight areas where we believe further work will make a significant difference in our understanding of the condition.”

For some, symptoms can persist or new ones develop, and can sometimes worsen and have a detrimental impact on their quality of life - with issues such as shortness of breath, fatigue and problems involving the heart, lungs, kidneys, nervous system and muscles and joints.

The guidelines say that people may have ongoing symptomatic Covid-19 if they still have symptoms four to 12 weeks after the starting to.

If their symptoms have not resolved after 12 weeks, they are designated as having post-coronavirus syndrome.

Joseph Carter, head of Asthma UK and the British Lung Foundation Scotland, said: “We welcome these new guidelines and further clarity on how best to support people with long Covid.

“Many people are facing a long recovery and we’ve heard from lots of people struggling with breathlessness through our post-Covid hub.

“Given the latest estimates that one in 20 people who have Covid-19 suffer with long-Covid, up to 5,400 people in Scotland could be experiencing these symptoms and require assistance from respiratory services during their recovery.”

Long Covid sufferer Callum O'Dwyer, from Aberdeenshire, spoke to The Herald in October about his experiences of the illness.

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Mr O’Dwyer, 28, started showing symptoms for the virus on the first day of lockdown in March - and has since exhibited symptoms including fatigue, breathlessness, a racing heart rate, brain fog and excruciating stomach pain.

He said: “I was the kind of person who, at a wedding, was the first person on the dance floor and the last one off.

“But soon I was so weak I was struggling to pick up medium-sized water bottles. I was really struggling to take care of myself, I couldn’t even stay on top of the dishes.

“I was waking up in the middle of the night and feeling like I couldn’t get enough air in, which was very scary. It felt like I was being smothered. 

“And the tiredness I felt was completely exhausting. It’s not just a regular tiredness, this is an exhaustion that drains away at your very soul.”