One in eight people who have recovered from COVID-19 are diagnosed with their first psychiatric or neurological illness within six months of positive testing for the bug, according to a new study.
Researchers who interviewed 236,379 coronavirus survivors found that the numbers increased to one in three when people with a previous history of psychiatric or neurological diseases were included, the Guardian reported.
In addition, the study found that one in nine patients was also diagnosed with conditions such as depression or stroke, despite not going to a hospital when they were infected, according to the lead author, Dr. Max Taquet, from the Department of Psychiatry from the University of Oxford.
The study, which has not yet been peer-reviewed, used electronic health records to evaluate North American hospitalized and outpatient patients with a confirmed diagnosis of COVID-19 who recovered.
The individuals were compared with a group diagnosed with influenza and another diagnosed with respiratory tract infections between January 20 and December 13, 2020, according to the media.
His analysis took into account factors such as age, race, gender, socioeconomic status and any underlying physical and mental conditions.
According to the results, the likelihood of a COVID-19 survivor developing a psychiatric or neurological disease in six months was 33.6 percent; nearly 13 percent of survivors did, in fact, receive a diagnosis in that period of time, the study found.
The researchers also found that most diagnoses were more common after attacks with the coronavirus 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, reported the Guardian.
When asked how long these conditions can last after diagnosis, Taquet told the outlet: “I don’t think we have an answer to that question yet.
He added: “For diagnoses like a stroke or intracranial bleeding, the risk tends to decrease dramatically in six months … but for some neurological and psychiatric diagnoses, we don’t have an answer on when it will stop.”
Although the study does not prove that COVID-19 is directly behind psychiatric and neurological conditions, the research suggests that the bug may have an impact on the brain and central nervous system.
Dr. Tim Nicholson, a psychiatrist and clinical speaker at King’s College Hospital who was not involved in the study, said the results would help researchers decide which neurological and psychiatric complications require further study.
“I think this particularly increases some disturbances in the list of interests, particularly dementia and psychosis … and pushes it down the list of potential importance a little bit, including Guillain-Barré syndrome,” he told the Guardian.
Meanwhile, another study found that the coronavirus can remain inside the brains of critically ill patients and 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 a serious illness.
Assistant professor Mukesh Kumar, the principal investigator, said the findings have implications for understanding the wide range of symptoms and severity of the disease among people who contract the disease.
“Our thought that it is more of a respiratory disease is not necessarily true,” said Kumar. “Once it infects the brain, it can affect anything because the brain is controlling your lungs, your heart, everything. The brain is a very sensitive organ. It is the central processor for everything ”.
That study was published in the journal Viruses.