One in eight people who have recovered from COVID-19 is diagnosed with their first psychiatric or neurological illness within six months of testing positive for error, according to a new study.
Researchers who surveyed 236,379 coronavirus survivors found that the number had risen to one in three when people with a history of psychiatric or neurological illness were included, the Guardian reported.
In addition, the study found that one in nine patients was diagnosed with conditions such as depression or stroke, despite not going to a hospital when they were infected, according to lead author Dr. Max Taquet of the Department. of Psychiatry, Oxford University.
The study, which has not yet been evaluated by colleagues, used electronic medical records to evaluate hospitalized and non-hospitalized U.S. patients with a confirmed diagnosis of COVID-19 who had recovered.
The subjects were compared with one group diagnosed with influenza and another diagnosed with respiratory tract infections between January 20 and December 13, 2020, according to the press.
Their analysis took into account factors such as age, race, sex, socio-economic status and any basic physical and mental conditions.
According to the results, the probability that a COVID-19 survivor would develop a psychiatric or neurological illness within six months was 33.6%; the study found that almost 13% of survivors actually received a diagnosis within that time.
The researchers also found that most diagnoses were more common after coronavirus attacks than after the flu or other respiratory infections – including stroke, intracranial bleeding, dementia and psychotic disorders.
Overall, COVID-19 was associated with an increased risk of these diagnoses, but the incidence was higher among those who required hospital treatment and significantly among patients who developed brain disease, the Guardian reported.
When asked how long the condition could last after diagnosis, Taquet told reporters. “I don’t think we have an answer to that question yet.”
He added: “For diagnoses such as stroke or intracranial bleeding, the risk tends to drop quite dramatically over six months … but for some neurological and psychiatric diagnoses we don’t have the answer when it will stop.”
Although the study does not show that COVID-19 is directly behind psychiatric and neurological conditions, research suggests that the bug may have an impact on the brain and central nervous system.
Dr. Tim Nicholson, a psychiatrist and clinical lecturer at King’s College Hospital who was not involved in the study, said the results will help researchers decide which neurological and psychiatric complications require more careful study.
“I think this in particular raises a number of interests on the list of interests, especially dementia and psychosis, and pushes the list of potential importance further, including Guillain-Barré syndrome,” he told the Guardian.
Meanwhile, another study found that coronavirus can remain in the brains of seriously ill patients and can trigger relapses among those who thought they had recovered.
Researchers at Georgia State University found that infecting the nasal passages of mice with the virus led to a rapid and growing attack on the brain that triggered severe disease.
Assistant Professor Mukesh Kumar, the lead researcher, said the findings have implications for understanding the wide range of symptoms and severity of the disease among people who contract the disease.
Our thinking that it is more of a respiratory disease is not necessarily true, Kumar said. “Once it infects the brain, it can affect anything, because the brain controls the lungs, the heart and everything. The brain is a very sensitive organ. It is the central processor for everything. ”
This study was published in the journal Viruses.