ISLAMABAD, July 17 (Online): A new report of COVID-19 patients referred to a neurological hospital in the United Kingdom describes complications including delirium, brain inflammation, and stroke. Viral infections can impact the brain, even if the virus has not directly infected brain tissue. For example, inflammation of the brain, or encephalitis, most often results from a viral infection. These infections usually cause mild, flu-like symptoms, but when they affect the brain, the issues can be severe. At around the same time as the 1918 flu pandemic, there was an epidemic of encephalitis lethargica, or “sleeping sickness.” Between 1917 and 1927, millions of people likely developed this issue worldwide. Many of the survivors experienced lasting behavioral changes and extreme lethargy. Some lived in catatonic states. Previously, some researchers have observed a link between infections with SARS-CoV and MERS-CoV — the coronaviruses that cause SARS and MERS, respectively — and signs of damage within the central nervous system. The new coronavirus has also been associated with neurological symptoms. However, our understanding of the neurological consequences of COVID-19 remains in its early stages. A recent report, led by experts from the Institute of Neurology at University College London, describes cases of delirium, brain … Continue reading What are the neurological complications of COVID-19?