Covid has been shown to accelerate the process of cognitive deterioration, also aggravating stable dementias
Since the first wave of covid-19, neurologists have noted that the disease was capable of causing long-term acute neurological syndromes and neuropsychiatric sequelae. Despite this, so far the understanding of the impact of the coronavirus on human cognition remains unclear, which is why neurologists refer to it as “brain fog”.
A group of researchers studied the effects of covid-19 on cognitive impairment in 14 patients with pre-existing dementia who experienced further cognitive impairment after the coronavirus. In total, there were four subjects with Alzheimer’s disease, five with vascular dementia, three with Parkinson’s disease dementia, and two with the behavioral variant of frontotemporal dementia.
“We hypothesize that there must have been some detrimental effect of covid in patients with pre-existing dementia by extrapolating our understanding of the cognitive impact of this viral infection in patients without dementia,” explain researchers Souvik Dubey, MD and DM of the Department of Neuromedicine, Bangur Institute of Neurosciences (BIN), based in Calcutta, India, and Julián Benito-León, MD and Ph.D. from the Department of Neurology at the University Hospital 12 de Octubre in Madrid, Spain.
According to them, the assessment of cognitive impairments in patients with pre-existing dementia is difficult due to several confounding factors and biases.
progressive damage
The duo found that all dementia subtypes, regardless of previous disease types in the patients, behaved like progressive dementia after Covid. Furthermore, scientists have realized that the line between different aspects of the disease has become more difficult after covid-19.
The researchers also found that the characteristics of a certain type of dementia changed after being infected with the virus. Furthermore, degenerative and vascular dementias began to behave as mixed, both clinically and radiologically. A rapidly and aggressively deteriorating course has been observed in patients with insidious onset, slowly progressive dementia and who were previously cognitively stable.
The study’s findings suggest that previously compromised brains have little defense against a new insult. That is, a “second hit” such as an infection promotes a dysregulated immune response and inflammation.
Foggy brain?
Agree with the doctor. Dubey and his co-investigators, “Brain fog” is ambiguous terminology. Also, no specific attribution to the spectrum of post-covid cognitive sequelae. “Based on the progression of cognitive deficits and the association with changes in white matter intensity, we propose a new term: ‘FADE-IN MEMORY’. That is, fatigue, decreased fluency, attention deficit, depression, executive dysfunction , reduced speed of information processing, and subcortical memory impairment.”
Other problems associated with discovery
Researcher Mahua Jana Dubey, MD, Department of Psychiatry, Berhampur Mental Hospital, Berhampur, India, points out that cognitive deficits, when accompanied by depression and/or apathy and fatigue in patients with or without pre-existing dementia, require meticulous evaluation. . This is because they impose stress and burdens on caregivers. “This is one of the most important but often overlooked issues that can potentially hinder treatment.”
“As population aging and dementia are on the rise globally, we believe recognition of patterns of cognitive impairment associated with COVID-19 is urgently needed to distinguish between coronavirus-associated cognitive impairment and other types of dementia,” he concluded. dr. Souvik Dubey.
Source: Souvik Dubey et al, The Effects of SARS-CoV-2 Infection on the Cognitive Functioning of Patients with Pre-Existing Dementia, Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease Reports (2023).
Source: Terra
Ben Stock is a lifestyle journalist and author at Gossipify. He writes about topics such as health, wellness, travel, food and home decor. He provides practical advice and inspiration to improve well-being, keeps readers up to date with latest lifestyle news and trends, known for his engaging writing style, in-depth analysis and unique perspectives.
