Concerns arise over possible link between COVID-19 and Alzheimer’s disease
Experts warn that COVID-19 could have a “long-term impact” on the nervous system of patients, manifesting in a higher incidence of Alzheimer’s disease (Alzheimer’s) especially among the younger age groups. Although there are no molecular traces of SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, in the brain, the nervous system symptoms of the virus are nonetheless associated with biomarkers for brain diseases and injuries. The perturbations associated with the virus were even found to reside in genetic variants associated with schizophrenia, depression, and other conditions.
Alzheimer’s involves a progressive mental decline, including severe memory loss and eventual loss of self – it has no cure.
According to medical experts, around 25% to 45% of those who died from COVID-19 are estimated to have suffered from Alzheimer’s, besides takingdamage to the lung, liver,and heart.
Read also: Swedish scientists discover aggressive, early onset Alzheimer’s in 40-year-olds
As the rate of mental illness climbs significantly in COVID-19 patients, there is significant need for preparedness for waves of Alzheimer’s cases in the future. Alzheimer′s Disease International (ADI), an international federation of Alzheimer’s and dementia associations across 100 countries, is one such organisation to have dedicated a team to further study the link between the coronavirus and dementia.
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