COVID-19 is connected with fatal brain inflammation, scientists say

The new study showed the increase in number of people with rare, and sometimes fatal neurological condition called acute disseminated encephalomyelitis (ODEM).

It is still unclear how often COVID-19 patients face brain alterations. In recent study were included only hospitalized patientwith neurological disorders, so this mean that the study included some severe cases.

The scientists studied information about 43 patients aged from 16 to 85 with neurological complications. 29 of them had positive COVID-19 test result, the rest of the participants had symptoms and suspicion of disease, based on other tests like chest X-ray and computed tomography.

So, there were recorded 10 cases of brain dysfunction. One patient even had symptoms of psychosis, including visual and auditory hallucinations. The majority of patients finally recovered even without specific treatment.

Moreover, 8 patients had strokes, usually due to blood clots – unfortunately, none of them recovered completely, one even died.

The researchers concluded that there is a necessity of additional study to make clear how exactly the brain is affected and whether it will lead to long-term consequences.