Among a recent imaging study, significant brain changes in COVID-19 survivors were identified

The results might aid research into the lingering neurological problems that might occur after a COVID-19 infection.
Up to six months after recovery, abnormalities can still be observed in the brains of COVID-19 survivors, according to new research. The team, led by researchers from the Indian Institute of Technology in Delhi, examined brain abnormalities brought on by infection with SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, using a specialized form of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI).

The MRI technique known as susceptibility weighted imaging (SWI) is very recent. It functions by making use of the various reactions that some substances, including blood constituents, calcium, and iron, have when subjected to a magnetic field. SWI is especially helpful for finding and diagnosing malignancies, vascular abnormalities, and brain hemorrhages.

Despite several case reports indicating such abnormalities, group-level investigations on COVID-19 changes in the brain’s magnetic susceptibility have not yet been prioritized, according to study author Sapna S. Mishra. “Our study highlights this novel element of COVID-19’s neurological consequences and documents severe abnormalities in COVID survivors,” according to the study.”

One in five persons with SARS-CoV-2 infection, according to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), will have some long-term symptoms. Since more and more people are getting COVID-19 and recovering from it, a lot of study has started to concentrate on these potential long-term impacts.

Although studies have found alterations in the lungs, heart, and other organs, many of the symptoms experienced by people with extended COVID—such as brain fog, headaches, dizziness, and even anxiety and depression—appear to be neurological in character.

The team compared MRI data from 30 healthy controls to data from 46 patients who had recovered from COVID-19 within the previous six months. The most common symptoms that individuals with lengthy COVID described were weariness, sleep disorders, a lack of focus, and memory issues.

The findings revealed that the left and right orbital inferior frontal gyri, among other frontal lobe white matter regions, had severe abnormalities in the COVID survivors.

According to Mishra, these brain regions are associated with fatigue, sleeplessness, anxiety, depression, headaches, and cognitive issues.

Additionally, abnormal readings were observed in the right ventral diencephalon area of the brain stem. The brain stem regulates a number of vital processes; its connection to the modulation of the sleep-wake cycle is particularly pertinent to extended COVID research.

Mishra summarized the findings as follows: “This study suggests that the coronavirus may result in severe long-term effects months after the infection has cleared up.

In order to determine if these brain abnormalities remain over extended periods of time, the researchers now intend to conduct a longitudinal study on the same group of COVID-19 survivors.

The research will be presented at the Radiological Society of North America’s annual meeting in 2022.