Coronavirus patients who have recovered from the deadly disease could potentially be left with 20 - 30% less lung capacity, doctors in Hong Kong have alleged.

They said that even after pulling through, those who have been infected with COVID-19 could be left gasping if they walk at a faster pace than usual.

The discovery was made by medics from the Hong Kong Hospital Authority after studying the first wave of patients once they had fully recovered from the virus. Of the 12 participants in the study, about two to three people experienced some changes in their lung capacity.

This is the disturbing moment a man wipes his saliva on the subway amid the coronavirus crisis:

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"They gasp if they walk a bit more quickly," Owen Tsang Tak-yin, the medical director of the authority's Infectious Disease Centre, told a press conference on Thursday, per the South China Morning Post.

He added that "some patients might have around a drop of 20 to 30% in lung function" after a full recovery.

However, Tsang clarified, according to the publication, that engaging in regular cardiovascular exercises, such as swimming, can improve lung capacity in the long-term.

He also stated that while it is too early to draw any long-term conclusions from the study, scans of the lungs of nine patients "found patterns similar to frosted glass in all of them, suggesting there was organ damage."

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In a report from the World Health Organization on Wednesday (11 March), they declared that the COVID-19 outbreak is now being officially recognized as a pandemic:

"WHO has been assessing this outbreak around the clock and we are deeply concerned both by the alarming levels of spread and severity, and by the alarming levels of inaction.

We have therefore made the assessment that COVID-19 can be characterized as a pandemic.

Pandemic is not a word to use lightly or carelessly. It is a word that, if misused, can cause unreasonable fear, or unjustified acceptance that the fight is over, leading to unnecessary suffering and death."

At the time of writing (March 13), there have been 132,567 cases of coronavirus and 4,947 deaths from the disease worldwide.

People who fully recover from coronavirus can be left with '20 - 30%' less lung function, Hong Kong doctors claim