Teams of researchers across the globe are studying whether neurological complications linked to COVID-19 may increase survivors' risk of developing Alzheimer's disease, NPR reported July 26.
Five takeaways:
1. Genetic research shows some genes responsible for increasing a person's risk of severe COVID-19 also boost the risk of Alzheimer's, according to NPR. PET scans taken before and after a COVID-19 infection also suggest that some survivors' brains undergo virus-related changes similar to those seen in Alzheimer's patients.
2. Gabriel de Erausquin, MD, PhD, a neurology professor at UT Health San Antonio in Texas, said the virus' effects on the brain appear to vary by age, with forgetfulness being the most common manifestation in people over 60. The symptoms mirror early stage Alzheimer's and can last for months, according to NPR.
"These folks tend to forget where they placed things, they tend to forget names, they tend to forget phone numbers. They also have trouble with language; they begin forgetting words," Dr. de Erausquin, whose team is slated to present research at the conference, told NPR. "And the expectation is that it may behave as Alzheimer's behaves, in a progressive fashion. But the true answer is we don't know."
3. Sudha Seshadri, MD, founding director of the Glenn Biggs Institute for Alzheimer's and Neurodegenerative Diseases at UT Health San Antonio, said this prospect is alarming, considering that millions of Americans have developed cognitive issues after contracting COVID-19.
"Even if the effect is small, it's something we're going to have to factor in because the population is quite large," she told NPR.
4. Dr. Seshadri said it could take a decade to understand whether COVID-19 survivors are more likely to develop Alzheimer's in their 60s and 70s compared to uninfected people.
5. Researchers are slated to present their initial findings on how COVID-19 affects the brain at the Alzheimer's Association International Conference July 26-30 in Denver.
To read NPR's full article, click here.