(NETHERLANDS TIMES) Thousands of Netherlands residents who recovered from Covid-19, the respiratory disease caused by the novel coronavirus, may be left with permanent damage to their lungs, resulting in decreased capacity and more difficulty absorbing oxygen, Leon van den Toorn, pulmonologist chairman of the Dutch association of physicians for pulmonary disease and tuberculosis NVALT, said to newspaper AD.
Many people underestimate the consequences of the coronavirus Van den Toorn said to the newspaper. The virus and the body's response to it can cause permanent damage to the lungs, he said. "In severe cases, a kind of scar formation occurs, we call this lung fibrosis. The lungs shrink and the lung tissue becomes stiffer, making it harder to get enough oxygen."