From blood clots to infected neurons, how Covid threatens the brain | Hacker News Reader

From blood clots to infected neurons, how Covid threatens the brain

npr.org

61 pointstheonething10 comments

>Frontera led a study that found that more than 13% of hospitalized COVID-19 patients had developed a new neurological disorder soon after being infected. A follow-up study found that six months later, about half of the patients in that group who survived were still experiencing cognitive problems.

The infection hospitalization rate for the Alpha variant was about 7% [0] so 50% of 13% of 7% means... 0.46% of patients may experience a new serious neurological complication that persists past 6 months.

Where "patients" is those aged 55-77 (with lower body mass indices, more past history of dementia, stroke and seizure, worse SOFA scores during hospitalization and higher rates of acute renal failure) [1], and...

>though we identified high rates of disability among both neurological COVID-19 patients and controls, this study was not designed to determine whether the deficits measured by these metrics are static or represent ongoing injury as suggested by some “long-hauler” and post-COVID literature. Since cognitive impairment and mood abnormalities occur in over 50% of ARDS survivors, it is possible that the level of disability we are documenting is not specific to SARS-CoV-2, but rather a result of factors related to critical viral illness.

[0] https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7895685/

[1] https://www.jns-journal.com/article/S0022-510X(21)00180-5/fu...

> COVID-19 can also damage the brain by causing blood clots or bleeding that result in a stroke.

This is also a very rare side effect of the J&J vaccine, https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/videos/vaccines/vi...

I'd like to notice the framing of the same issue in two cases:

1. covid19 can potentially cause irreversible damage to brain with blood clots (the reader is encouraged to focus on grave consequencies and ignore the low likehood of those issues)

2. the J&J vaccince has an extremely low possibility to cause blood knots, so CDC recommends to play it safe (the reader is encouraged to focus on the low likehood of adverse effects and ignore the severity of those effects)

Edit: I'd add that in both cases the news outlet wants to bypass the reader's rationality and reach directly the emotional part of the brain, so the reader would make the decision based on feelings.

> This is also a very rare side effect of the J&J vaccine

Not just J&J [1]

>SINGAPORE - There are 10 suspected cases of cerebral venous thrombosis (CVT), or blood clot in the brain, among those who have received the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines for Covid-19 in Singapore.

[1] https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/10-suspected-cases-of...

With the virus becoming endemic, I really hope we find good therapies for the brain-related damage.

Early detection and early treatment is preferred, before a Covid infection progresses to serious injury.

Fortunately, multiple early treatments are available, depending on country.

Here in the US we prolong seeking out treatment until it's really serious. Seems like the antivirals may not help much here. But I suppose other treatments have likely been developed in the last year or two, too.

Those "treatments" area leading to tons of diabetics though - "thanks" to the abuse of steroids!

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