Brain's Frontal Lobes Electrical Activity Affected by COVID-19
COVID-19 has shown to leave lasting neurological impacts on some patients, with studies suggesting an approximate 15-25% of severe cases experiencing symptoms such as headaches, confusion, seizures, and strokes. These patients may undergo an EEG test to monitor the electrical activity of their brain, with the test often revealing abnormalities in the frontal lobes.
Researchers from Baylor College of Medicine and the University of Pittsburgh analyzed EEG results from 617 patients, identifying the slowing of brain waves and abnormal electrical discharges as the most common findings. The extent of the EEG abnormalities appears to correlate positively with both the severity of the disease and preexisting neurological conditions.
Dr. Zulfi Haneef, one of the study's authors, suggests that this could indicate a connection between the virus' nose entry point and the nearby frontal lobes, stressing the importance of performing EEG tests on a wider range of patients and other brain imaging techniques for a closer look. However, it's important to note that the virus might not be directly responsible for all the damage, as systemic effects of the infection may play a role in EEG abnormalities beyond the frontal lobes.
Some individuals who have recovered from COVID-19 report ongoing health problems, now referred to as "long COVID." This can include cognitive issues commonly known as "brain fog." A recent, pre-peer-reviewed study found that those who claimed to have had COVID performed less well on an online cognitive test, possibly implying that the infection has aged their brains cognitively by around a decade. Experts, however, stress that this study does not prove long-term cognitive decline but does highlight concerns about lasting brain effects.
Interestingly, these EEG abnormalities associated with the neurological symptoms of COVID-19 infection contribute to these concerns, as they may indicate long-term neurological issues that were previously suspected. On the positive side, follow-up EEG tests have revealed improvements in 56.8% of cases. While the analysis has several limitations, it's clear that ongoing research is crucial for understanding the long-term effects of COVID-19 on the brain. [1][2][3]
[1] Neurocognitive Impairment in COVID-19: A Narrative Review[2] Long-term Neurological Effects of COVID-19: An Updated Review[3] Immune Responses and Inflammation in COVID-19 Related Neurodegenerative Diseases
- Scientists at Baylor College of Medicine and the University of Pittsburgh discovered that a significant number of COVID-19 patients experience epilepsy seizures and other neurological disorders, as shown by EEG tests.
- In severe COVID-19 cases, the presence and extent of EEG abnormalities seem to correlate with the disease's severity and pre-existing medical conditions like neurological disorders.
- Research into long COVID has uncovered issues such as "brain fog," which can impact mental health and wellness, and preliminary studies suggest that COVID-19 might have lasting effects on cognitive function comparable to aging the brain by approximately a decade.
- As the global health community continues to study the long-term neurological impacts of COVID-19, follow-up EEG tests show that improvements can occur in more than half of the cases, albeit with limitations in the ongoing analysis.
