Brain's Frontal Lobes' Electrical Activity Potentially Affected by COVID-19
COVID-19 senselessly wreaks havoc on the brain, and a recent research review points to aberrantities in the frontal region of the brain being common among patients exhibiting neurological symptoms related to the virus.
Here's the lowdown:
Findings suggest that around 15-25% of patients with severe COVID-19 experience neurological symptoms, including headaches, confusion, seizures, and strokes. When these patients undergo EEG tests, they often display unusual slowing of brain waves and abnormal electrical discharges.
Researchers investigated how COVID-19 affects the brain by examining EEG results from 617 patients from 84 different studies. They found that the slowing of brain waves and abnormal electrical discharges were most common. Interestingly, the severity of the disease and the presence of preexisting neurological conditions, such as epilepsy, seemed to amplify these abnormalities in EEG tests.
One striking observation is that more than a third of the weirdly functioning brain areas were located in the frontal lobes—the part that's close to the nose, where the virus is likely to enter, according to Dr. Zulfi Haneef, a co-author of the study. This suggests that EEG tests should be administered more frequently to a wider range of patients, along with other brain imaging tests like MRIs and CT scans for a clearer look at the frontal lobes.
Now, it's important to note that the virus might not be the only culprit for these EEG abnormalities. In fact, inflammation, low oxygen levels, sticky blood, and even cardiac arrest could contribute to the mayhem beyond just the frontal lobes.
Additionally, many people might experience lingering issues, known as long COVID, including "brain fog" long after recovering from the initial infection. Some research indicates that COVID-19 might prematurely age the brain cognitively by about a decade. While this study hasn't been peer-reviewed yet, it raises serious concerns about long-term effects on the brain. The discovery of EEG abnormalities associated with neurological symptoms of COVID-19 further fuels these worries.
On the bright side, nearly 57% of patients showed improvements when given follow-up EEG tests. But the study has limitations, including lack of access to raw data and potential bias in testing due to doctors focusing on patients with neurological symptoms.
So, while direct research on COVID-19 and EEG abnormalities in the frontal lobes remains limited, these findings certainly hint at possible long-term effects on the brain, something health experts believed might be the case. Stay tuned as we continue to unravel the mysteries of COVID-19.
- Coronavirus, specifically COVID-19, has been found to cause neurological symptoms in some patients, such as seizures, and when these patients undergo EEG tests, they often display abnormalities.
- The presence of preexisting neurological conditions like epilepsy appears to amplify these abnormalities in EEG tests among COVID-19 patients.
- The study suggests that more than a third of the brain areas with these EEG abnormalities are located in the frontal lobes, raising concerns about the potential long-term effects of COVID-19 on the brain.
- Despite limitations in direct research, findings hint at possible long-term effects of COVID-19 on the brain, specifically in the area of mental health, neurological disorders, and health-and-wellness.
