this post was submitted on 15 Jan 2025
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We Just Got More Evidence That Long COVID Is a Brain Injury

The exact nature of long COVID is still coming to light, but we just got some of the best evidence yet that this debilitating condition stems from a brain injury.

Using high-resolution scanners, researchers at the Universities of Cambridge and Oxford have shown microscopic, structural abnormalities in the brainstems of those recovering from COVID-19.

Signs of brain inflammation were present up to 18 months after first contracting the SARS-CoV-2 virus.

"We show that the brainstem is a site of vulnerability to long-term effects of COVID-19, with persistent changes evident in the months after hospitalization," the authors of the study conclude.

https://doi.org/10.1093/brain/awae215

#health #science #biology #news @science@lemmy.world @science@beehaw.org @news@lemmy.world @health@lemmy.world @usnews@beehaw.org

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[–] Grandwolf319@sh.itjust.works 52 points 20 hours ago (3 children)

I think it’s important for people to realize:

A very bad cold or flu can totally damage your body and is how lots of older folks go unfortunately.

Covid without a vaccine would have been a terrible sickness.

What bugs me the most is so many people who don’t understand logical fallacies kept saying just wait a year or two and you’ll see mass deaths and weakened immunity… and they are conveniently silent now, probably blaming fires on DEI or something stupid like that.

[–] Zomg@lemmy.world 2 points 11 hours ago* (last edited 11 hours ago)

That was my old boss. You described them to a T in Re: to the mass deaths in 2 years. She was an absolute idiot, and I have no doubt would put her political party over her own personal safety again if she knew Democrats were already doing the same as she needed to. She is incapable of thinking rationally.

[–] scarabic@lemmy.world 22 points 19 hours ago (2 children)

These people are addicted to this feeling that they have discovered some secret that destroys conventional wisdom and sheds a whole new light on everything. They are addicted to this feeling that they’ve found a big lie everyone’s swallowed and they’re going to spit it out.

Every part of their worldview has to have that quality or they can’t hold onto it with their brains. There’s a great deal of straightforward, plain-as-day information that’s totally missing from their worldview because it doesn’t contain the drug their brain is addicted to.

[–] GratefullyGodless@lemmy.world 1 points 11 hours ago (1 children)

I wonder if you're on to something there. What if they do get a hit of dopamine every time they think they're being clever even though they're completely wrong, and so they deliberately lean towards all the crazy that makes them think they're being clever just for the dopamine? That would explain a lot about the MAGA crowd, as they are actually physically addicted to the crazy in that case,

[–] scarabic@lemmy.world 1 points 10 hours ago* (last edited 10 hours ago)

Yes and there is one other aspect. When they get into this conspiracy shit, there is a whole community of people ready to welcome them. They are congratulated for seeing the light and joining the movement. This fulfills a social need for a lot of these people, who are lonely or in some cases estranged from family.

This process of feeling like you’ve drawn back the curtain on life, and, in the same stroke found “your people” is incredibly exhilarating to them. It’s like a whole new day in their lives. And THAT’S why they’ll defend their crap beliefs to the death. Because giving them up means going back to the humdrum world where they are just a nobody again.

[–] MooseTheDog@lemmy.world 3 points 18 hours ago

The kind of person that latches onto one detail in an argument and doesn't let go. Especially when it has nothing to do with the disagreement. You know the type.

[–] Zero22xx@lemmy.world 9 points 20 hours ago* (last edited 20 hours ago)

conveniently silent

Always. When the previous conspiracy theory / rapture date / return of JFK / illuminati plot doesn't turn out to be true, there's no talking about it or self reflection, it's just right onto the next conspiracy theory / rapture date / return of JFK / illuminati plot.

[–] MooseTheDog@lemmy.world 25 points 18 hours ago (1 children)

I knew a conservotard type. He never ventured out from his rural area so he never had to change his mind. He didn't believe in COVID of course, until he lost all taste of food. I genuinely feel bad for the guy. He said everything smelled or tasted like shit. It was 3 months before he started tasting again. After that I laughed at every anti-COVID nut in my life pretty openly.

[–] LodeMike@lemmy.today 4 points 13 hours ago* (last edited 13 hours ago) (1 children)

I'm anti-COVID and I'm pretty sure everyone else is, except the group of people you meant to refer to.

[–] Based_and_Cool@lemmy.dbzer0.com 1 points 11 hours ago

In that sense, I'm anti-mask.

[–] jawa21@lemmy.sdf.org 72 points 23 hours ago (4 children)

Look, I know this isn't exactly the most appropriate community to post a comment like this. I do however need to say as someone that has had debilitating brain fog for a couple of years thanks to covid: "...fuck."

[–] Gigasser@lemmy.world 2 points 12 hours ago (1 children)

I mean, I don't recommend this to everyone, nor am I advocating for everyone to do this, but have you tried taking a dose of psilocybin containing mushrooms?

[–] jawa21@lemmy.sdf.org 1 points 12 hours ago (1 children)

Not in a long time. Trying to obtain them would be stupidly dangerous for me in a lot of ways. I'd be more than down for it though.

[–] Gigasser@lemmy.world 1 points 6 hours ago

Well depending on your state (if you're in the US) you could just grow them from spores

[–] Emmie@lemm.ee 18 points 22 hours ago* (last edited 22 hours ago)

It sucks but the recovery is still possible. I imagine gaslighting and not taking it seriously by people is debilitating.

When you suffer a brain injury from a stroke everyone will be supportive and offer help but when it is long covid people will be like “what? you are probably imagining things” both aliments are recoverable but it must suck to be constantly denied and not treated seriously

[–] Boomkop3@reddthat.com 19 points 22 hours ago* (last edited 22 hours ago) (1 children)

You're fine, it's anecdotal but perspectives are still nice to see sometimes. Quite a few people around me had the same issue, a few died. (Yes, they had refused the vaccine)

[–] NotMyOldRedditName@lemmy.world 7 points 21 hours ago* (last edited 21 hours ago) (1 children)

I just found out recently that a friend i kinda stopped talking to as much that went down the right wing rabbit hole and went from Obama supporter to MAGA supporter(and still is today) was antivax and got covid after his father was hospitalized with it, and was also hospitalized with it, and brushed it off as not that bad. And yes the vaccine was available by the time they got it.

[–] OutlierBlue@lemmy.ca 4 points 17 hours ago* (last edited 11 hours ago) (1 children)

hospitalized

not that bad

You do not get hospitalized for something that's not that bad. The doctors obviously thought it was bad.

[–] Boomkop3@reddthat.com 1 points 15 hours ago* (last edited 15 hours ago)

But think of the economy, this is making some hospital ceo rich af

:p

[–] bluewing@lemm.ee 15 points 22 hours ago (4 children)

That makes 2 of us. Been living with brain fog, memory loss, inability to pick out words when speaking, and now I set something down on a countertop, turn around, turn back and look and I literally can't see the item I set there. I see everything else, even the countertop where the item is sitting. Generally I either panic or I get pissed at myself for being so stupid. And then all of a sudden, the item magically returns to view as a stare at it.

Oh, and just for fun, breathing is still hard. And all medical testing shows my lungs are just fine and there should be problem. My pulmonologist tells me I'm one of the lucky few to be so chosen-- in jest. (I had to search "lung doctor" because I couldn't remember the word pulmonologist just now)

[–] dethedrus@lemmy.dbzer0.com 9 points 21 hours ago (1 children)

The inability to see something I've literally just dealt with after a short time has been happening to me for 45 years... since I suffered a TBI as a kid. I've never heard someone else talk about not just losing things but the madness of being unable to process the sensory input of something I WAS JUST HOLDING.

Thank you for highlighting this!

I've had covid twice now, despite original vaccinations, yearly boosters and wearing a mask constantly when around others. The firsf was likely from a careless dentist and second from an anti-vaxx family member. Thankfully no long covid to make my previously smushed brain even worse.

[–] Soggy@lemmy.world 1 points 16 hours ago

Man, I wish I had a brain injury or something to explain why I can lose something I set down without moving from my chair. I learned long ago to just ask someone else and it's often right in the open.

[–] jatone@lemmy.dbzer0.com 2 points 19 hours ago* (last edited 19 hours ago) (1 children)

not a doctor: mild doses of magic mushrooms. anything that helps promote neurological connections/growth would be worth looking into. you'll still need to retrain your brain as well but you need the cells to do their thing and you to give them the right stims.

[–] bluewing@lemm.ee 1 points 11 hours ago

I'm sure they will go well with my other real doctor prescriptions.

[–] veganpizza69@lemmy.vg 2 points 20 hours ago (2 children)

Oh, and just for fun, breathing is still hard. And all medical testing shows my lungs are just fine and there should be problem.

autonomic issue?

[–] bluewing@lemm.ee 1 points 11 hours ago

They don't really understand the mechanism very well yet according my pulimologist. But data is being collected and studies are being done.

[–] starelfsc2@sh.itjust.works 4 points 17 hours ago

Not the one you responded to but it's a couple things, generally just lungs feeling inflamed, difficulty taking a full breath, way more sensitive to air quality / air temperature, and a bit of autonomic (I have to use a cpap to fall asleep now because sometimes I just stop breathing as I'm falling asleep)

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[–] Hamartiogonic@sopuli.xyz 119 points 1 day ago (13 children)

Better not get vaccinated, because the vaccine kills you and covid is just another harmless flu anyway… oh wait.

Seriously though, antivaxxers already have some sort of psychological issues going on, so adding a literal brain injury to the list might not even make a big difference at that point.

[–] flicker@lemmy.dbzer0.com 34 points 1 day ago (2 children)

I went looking for data, because my knee-jerk was to assume people who get vaccinated are more likely to live, and thus more likely to get long covid.

But here's what I found. The researchers found that the rate of new Long COVID cases declined with each variant, and that the numbers of cases were significantly lower in the vaccinated cohorts.

I'm just adding to the discourse.

[–] Hamartiogonic@sopuli.xyz 11 points 22 hours ago

Indeed! Too bad facts don’t work when talking to conspiracy theorists. Regardless, that’s an interesting observation to the rest of us.

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[–] Wiz@midwest.social 28 points 23 hours ago (4 children)

COVID makes you dumber, but what happens if you start out dumb?

[–] ZeffSyde@lemmy.world 19 points 22 hours ago

The current administration awards you a place in office.

[–] Hamartiogonic@sopuli.xyz 15 points 22 hours ago (2 children)

Even lower intelligence score? As far as D&D rules are concerned, you would get knocked unconscious if your intelligence drops to zero.

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[–] OutlierBlue@lemmy.ca 2 points 17 hours ago

You get an overflow error and become a genius.

[–] veganpizza69@lemmy.vg 2 points 20 hours ago

There is no floor except the for the artificial one built out of privilege.

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[–] BJHanssen@lemmy.world 19 points 23 hours ago (1 children)

I believe the signs have always pointed to it being a one-two punch of lingering inflammation and actual lasting physical damage to the blood vessels, including in the brain. The fatigue symptoms dissipated for me after about a year, but the inability to focus and the shite memory has not and likely will not go away. Also my muscles got fucked by the rhabdo and my EDS got much worse, but hey…

Every new piece of scholarly evidence is good to have.

[–] SuspiciousCatThing@pawb.social 2 points 16 hours ago

my EDS

Omg a wild zebra.

[–] TheOctonaut@mander.xyz 53 points 1 day ago (1 children)

Well yeah, that's where the chip goes

[–] thefartographer@lemm.ee 30 points 1 day ago (1 children)

I prefer consuming chips orally. Potato or paint, I'm easy.

[–] WhatYouNeed@lemmy.world 4 points 22 hours ago

Hmmmm lead based paint....

[–] caboose2006@lemm.ee 6 points 21 hours ago (1 children)
[–] ComicalMayhem@lemmy.world 2 points 18 hours ago (1 children)

Are they still free in the US?

[–] OutlierBlue@lemmy.ca 2 points 17 hours ago

Soon they'll be illegal!

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