Loss of smell during COVID linked to structural, functional brain alterations
Loss of smell during COVID linked to structural, functional brain alterations
According to data shared by the CDC last year, around 34% of patients who contracted COVID between 2020 and 2023 reported losing their sense of smell.
Many individuals who lost their sense of smell when infected with COVID-19 show structural and functional brain alterations on imaging, according to new work published in Nature. Now, experts are concerned that the symptoms could be associated with long-term brain alterations. In a group of people who reported anosmia as one of their COVID symptoms, experts recently observed an association between the loss of smell and decreased functional activity during decision-making tasks, reduced cortical thickness and other neural measures.
Interesting study, but N=100, with only 73 having had COVID-19, is a rather small sample size. Hopefully this can be cited as a need for additional research with a larger group!
39Brain imaging studies usually have low sample size https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1053811920306509
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This virus is gonna have turned us all into senseless drooling blobs barely able to breathe in a couple of decades isn't it
Kinda hyperbolic, but protecting right-wing feefees is a fucking stupid reason for not treating this more seriously.
I kinda want to keep my sense of smell and decision making abilities
34It's everybody's feefees now. Point out that the pandemic is still absolutely going on and non-conservatives will also look at you with hostile non-comprehension.
5I used to have pretty bad allergies from around april to august, where my nose and therefore my sense of smell was fucked. It's more miserable than people realise. Granted the runny nose did some heavy lifting, but i stopped enjoying food and was just kinda miserable because of it
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Is “structural alterations” a delicate way of saying “damage?”
34Physical brain damage
16Fully bonked up
9Completely fubared.
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It can be, but isn't necessarily so. As an AuDHD (autism + ADHD) person, I have "structural alterations" that result in things being different in ways that can be positive or negative. The brain is also EXTREMELY plastic and able to adjust to a lot. That said, the short-run effects are almost always going to be inconvenient at best for the person in question.
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I’ll currently on day three of no smells (except bacon, interestingly). Lost taste for about 36 hours, but that’s back now fortunately. Is my fourth Covid infection. First time losing smell or taste.
Would have preferred not seeing this article for a few days 🙃
9It was pretty funky when I had it. Came back in a week or so iirc
8For me the loss of smell lasted 6 months. It was depressing as hell.
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“This symptom can serve as a clinical, and in some cases a preclinical, indicator of neurological diseases such as Alzheimer's disease, Huntington's disease, Parkinson's disease, vascular dementia, and mild cognitive impairment, among others,” co-corresponding author Pablo Billeke, with the Laboratory of Neuroscience and Neuromodulation in Santiago, Chile, and colleagues explain. “Therefore, objective evaluations and follow-up are required.”
Well, that's frightening. I don't mean to be insensitive by downplaying the threat of HIV because it was always a death sentence in the early days. But this may be the HIV of our times. The thing that we study and talk about a lot for years and years. Apologies if I offended. I really didn't mean to.
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