Brain's Frontal Lobes Electrical Activity May Be Affected by COVID-19
Revised Review of COVID-19's Impact on the Brain through EEG Tests
Are you curious about how COVID-19 affects the brain? Researchers are diving deep into this topic, uncovering some fascinating insights using electroencephalography (EEG) tests. Here's what we know so far.
The Link Between COVID-19 and Neurological Symptoms
Approximately 15-25% of patients with severe COVID-19 may experience a variety of neurological symptoms, including headaches, confusion, delirium, impaired consciousness, seizures, and strokes. If you're dealing with these issues, your doctor might suggest an EEG test.
What is an EEG Test?
This test involves placing electrodes on your scalp to monitor the electrical activity of your brain. By analyzing these events, researchers can gather valuable information about the brain's functioning during a COVID-19 infection.
The Connection Between COVID-19 and the Brain
To better understand COVID-19's impact on the brain, a team of researchers from Baylor College of Medicine and the University of Pittsburgh analyzed EEG results from over 600 patients reported in 84 different studies.
They discovered that the most common findings were the slowing of brain waves and abnormal electrical discharges. Interestingly, the extent of these EEG abnormalities correlated with the severity of the disease and any preexisting neurological conditions, such as epilepsy.
The Role of the Frontal Lobes
Around a third of the abnormal findings were in the frontal lobes of the brain. Dr. Zulfi Haneef, one of the study's co-authors, suggests that this may be linked to the virus's likely entry point—the nose. This area of the brain is directly next to the nose, which could explain this observation.
Dr. Haneef recommends that doctors should consider wider EEG testing and other brain imaging techniques, such as MRIs or CT scans, to get a closer look at the frontal lobe.
Long-Term Effects
Some individuals who have recovered from COVID-19 report ongoing health issues, like brain fog. A recent study found that these individuals performed less well on an online cognitive test compared to those who did not believe they had contracted the virus. Researchers suggest that the infection might age people cognitively by around a decade.
While this study does not definitively prove that COVID-19 causes long-term cognitive decline, it does highlight concerns about lasting impacts on the brain. According to Dr. Haneef, the fact that EEG abnormalities are associated with the neurological symptoms of COVID-19 adds to these concerns.
Limitations and Future Directions
The study had several limitations, including the lack of access to raw data from individual studies, potential omissions of normal EEGs, and the overrepresentation of EEGs on patients with neurological symptoms. Additionally, doctors often administer anti-seizure medications to patients they suspect are having seizures, which may obscure signs of seizures in EEG traces.
To better understand the relationship between COVID-19 and EEG abnormalities, especially in the frontal lobes, more targeted research is needed. As we continue to explore this fascinating topic, stay informed with the latest updates from reliable sources. Your health matters, and staying informed can help protect you and your loved ones.
- The discovery from the analysis of EEG results reveals that patients with severe COVID-19 may experience seizures as a neurological symptom, especially those with pre-existing conditions like epilepsy.
- Interestingly, studies investigating the long-term effects of COVID-19 suggest that some recovered individuals experience ongoing health issues such as brain fog, which might indicate cognitive decline akin to aging a decade.
- To completely grasp the relationship between COVID-19, neurological disorders such as epilepsy, and the frontal lobes of the brain, more targeted research using EEG tests is necessary to provide further insights on the impact of the coronavirus on health-and-wellness and medical-conditions.
