After infection, some patients experience some form of atrophy and cognitive impairment. What is the scope of these results for the American scientist Eric Topol?
this COVID-19 it may look like “mild” infection in most patients. However, there is already evidence to suggest that both severe and mild conditions can leave the patient. consequences in the brain. “For the large number of people who think mild cases of COVID-19 don’t make sense, these results will be different. Yes, it’s a short-term effect so far and is partially reversible over time. Yes, it is likely to be lower with current variants and vaccination. But denial doesn’t work,” the scientist wrote. Eric Topol, Director of the California Scripps Institute in the United States.
“We were studying a lesson mainly mild infection so that we can actually see some differences in his brain and how much his brain has changed compared to uninfected quite a surprise” said the lead author, Professor Gwenaelle Douaud From the University of Oxford, Wellcome Center for Integrative Neuroimaging.
The researchers built on the UK Biobank project, which has been tracking the health of 500,000 people for nearly 15 years. It has a database of registered browsers before the pandemic. This feature presented a unique opportunity to study the long-term health impact of the virus.
There were 401 participants. this 96% has Mild COVID-19 Y 384 participants Number they were infection. they discovered that. overall brain size participants who have disease had happened Decreased between 0.2% and 2%. produced gray matter losses olfactory areas, odor-related areas, and odor-related areas memory. And for those who have has recently recovered they had a little more difficulty performing complex mental tasks.
The study was conducted when circulation of the original virus and its Alpha variant detected in Wuhan, China was frequent and loss of smell and taste was the main symptom. However, since last December, the number of people infected with and reporting this symptom with the Omicron variant, which is predominant in the world, has decreased significantly.
Meanwhile, in the study Brazil also found evidence of symptoms Brain after COVID-19. Published in scientific journal PNAS From the United States Academy of Sciences. Through research, scientists virus infects astrocytes which ones brain cells performing multiple functions key code for realization nerve activity causing structural changes in the brain.
In some patients, coronavirus infection can cause brain abnormalities and dysfunction As determined by the study conducted by Daniel Martins-de-Souza in Biochemistry from Campinas State University. The study consisted of MRI of the brain structure of 81 patients in moderate recovery from the disease and 81 healthy patients. They confirmed what kind of disease the patients in the first group showed. reduced cortical thickness A finding related to symptoms of anxiety and depression.
In addition to examining the results of the first two groups, the team Brain samples from 26 deceased people by COVID-19. Analyzes of samples 5 out of 26 cases he read suffered severe damage to brain tissues. Later, deeper analysis showed that the morphology of astrocytes, key cells for maintaining neuronal metabolism, makes them highly susceptible to being infected by the coronavirus.
In the case of astrocytes, research NRP1 receptor this gateway for virus. this astrocytes analyzed showed modified levels used for metabolic working between neurons and for neurotransmitter production in addition to separating neurotoxic molecules. These changes were confirmed after the person got the infection.
this long-term changes in the brain described so far in the research range atrophy on orbitofrontal cortex up to neurocognitive disability passing through overstrain and its symptoms anxiety in patients suffering from the disease moderately. in patients with Passed due to illness, study shows evidence acute and severe damage to brain tissue from the samples orbitofrontal region.
According to experts at the Mayo Clinic in the United States, if a person symptom your syndrome post COVID-19 you should consult your advisor doctor. Among the most common symptoms burnout symptoms worsen after doing physical or mental effort, fire, difficulty to think or to concentrate, headache darned to sleep, dizziness feeling of getting up seams, loss of the smell or taste Y depression anyone anxiety among others.