via Feinberg School of Medicine
A new review of neurological symptoms of COVID-19 patients in current scientific literature reveals the disease poses a global threat to the entire nervous system, reports a Northwestern Medicine study published this week in Annals of Neurology.
About half of hospitalized patients have neurological manifestations of COVID-19, which include headache, dizziness, decreased alertness, difficulty concentrating, disorders of smell and taste, seizures, strokes, weakness and muscle pain.
“It’s important for the general public and physicians to be aware of this, because a SARS-COV-2 infection may present with neurologic symptoms initially, before any fever, cough or respiratory problems occur,” said lead author of the review, Dr. Igor Koralnik, Northwestern Medicine chief of neuro-infectious diseases and global neurology and a professor of neurology at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine.
The review describes the different neurological conditions that may occur in COVID-19 patients and how to diagnose them, as well as likely pathogenic mechanisms.
“This understanding is key to direct appropriate clinical management and treatment,” Koralnik said.
The disease may affect the entire nervous system, including the brain, spinal cord and nerves as well as the muscles. There are many different ways COVID-19 can cause neurological dysfunction, he said. Because this disease may affect multiple organs (lung, kidney, heart), the brain may also suffer from lack of oxygenation or from clotting disorders that may lead to ischemic or hemorrhagic strokes.
In addition, the virus may cause direct infection of the brain and meninges. Finally, the reaction of the immune system to the infection may cause inflammation that can damage the brain and nerves.
Koralnik and colleagues have formed a Neuro-COVID research team and started a retrospective analysis of all COVID-19 patients hospitalized at Northwestern Medicine to determine the frequency and type of neurological complications, as well as response to treatment.
Since knowledge about the long term outcome of neurologic manifestations of COVID-19 is limited, Koralnik also will follow some of those patients prospectively in his new outpatient Neuro-COVID clinic to determine if neurological problems are temporary or permanent. These studies will provide the foundation on how to diagnose, manage and treat the many neurologic manifestations of COVID-19, he said.
The Latest Updates from Bing News & Google News
Go deeper with Bing News on:
Neurological symptoms of COVID-19
- Study to look at neurological impacts of COVID-19 on survivors
Brain fog (difficulty thinking or concentrating) and memory issues are just a few of the neurological symptoms that can linger for COVID-19 long-haulers. Although research shows many COVID-19 ...
- COVID-19 carries a much higher risk of epilepsy and seizures than influenza
In fact, many people hospitalized due to COVID-19 report neurological symptoms, the most common of which include muscle aches, headaches, dizziness, confusion, and altered taste and smell. In some ...
- Risk of seizure rises in six months after COVID-19
A bout of COVID-19, even a milder one, may raise the risk of having a seizure in the next six months, a large new study suggests.
- How Does COVID-19 Harm Brain? Scientists Find Mechanisms Associated With Neurological Damage [Study]
According to researchers, COVID-19 patients struggling with severe neurological symptoms exhibit signs of impairment in the blood-brain barrier, and changes in brain structure depending on the ...
- How COVID-19 causes neurological damage
Although the coronavirus known as SARS-CoV-2 does not infect nerve cells, it can cause damage to the nervous system. Researchers from the University of Basel and University Hospital Basel have studied ...
Go deeper with Google Headlines on:
Neurological symptoms of COVID-19
[google_news title=”” keyword=”neurological symptoms of COVID-19″ num_posts=”5″ blurb_length=”0″ show_thumb=”left”]
Go deeper with Bing News on:
Neurologic manifestations of COVID-19
- Major Life Stressors 'Strongly Predictive' of Long COVID Symptoms
Major stressful life events after recovery from COVID-19, such as the death of a loved one, can increase risk for developing symptoms of long COVID, new research suggests.
- Suffering from Long COVID headaches and brain fog? Another coronavirus could be the culprit
Exposure to common-cold coronaviruses, and a phenomenon called immune imprinting, could help determine whether you develop Long COVID, experts say.
- COVID-19 carries a much higher risk of epilepsy and seizures than influenza
In fact, many people hospitalized due to COVID-19 report neurological symptoms, the most common of which include muscle aches, headaches, dizziness, confusion, and altered taste and smell. In some ...
- Risk of seizure rises in six months after COVID-19
A bout of COVID-19, even a milder one, may raise the risk of having a seizure in the next six months, a large new study suggests.
- Long-COVID symptoms worsened by stressful events
No differences were found in sex, education level, race, pre-COVID-19 mRS scores, history of dementia/psychiatric disease, COVID-19 severity, and the rates of neurologic complications during ...
Go deeper with Google Headlines on:
Neurologic manifestations of COVID-19
[google_news title=”” keyword=”neurologic manifestations of COVID-19″ num_posts=”5″ blurb_length=”0″ show_thumb=”left”]
