Research has shown that COVID-19 may also result in potentially fatal brain damage

News24xx.com - Research has shown that COVID-19 may also result in potentially fatal brain damage, along with several neurological problems.

This is as per a study published in the journal Brain: Researchers discovered that some COVID-19 patients have suffered swelling in the brain along with episodes of delirium. 

Some COVID-19 patients have also reported nervous-system disorders like Guillain Barre syndrome, causing paralysis, with some experiencing strokes.

What’s worse is that researchers have seen these traits in patients who’re not just experiencing a severe case of COVID-19 (requiring a ventilator to breathe) but also mild ones. 

Study researchers looked at 43 patients suffering from COVID-19 between the ages of 16 and 85 years at the National Hospital for Neurology and Neurosurgery in London, between April 9 and May 15.

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Ten patients reported the aforementioned swelling with the episodes of delirium. A 55-year old woman who had no psychiatric history whatsoever started behaving oddly, three days after being discharged from the hospital. She would reportedly take her coat on and off, and also started experiencing hallucinations.

A dozen more patients were observed to have swelling in their central nervous system with one patient in the study group dying. Nine of the 12 patients were diagnosed for ADEM (acute disseminated encephalomyelitis) -- a rare kind of inflammation known to attack nerves in children's brain and spinal cord after mumps or measles. 

The frequency of cases with ADEM also rose, with two to three cases being reported every week in the months of April and May. Seven other patients who were a part of the study were diagnosed with Guillain-Barré syndrome with some developing symptoms as late as three weeks after COVID-19 symptoms started showing. 

Researchers concluded stating that COVID-19 is not just linked to severe respiratory symptoms among patients, it is also indicative of the fact that COVID-19 can not only severely impact the lungs, but also the brain.

Study authors urge doctors to follow up with recovered patients to keep track of their mental health, along with their cardiac health.