Can COVID trigger Alzheimer’s disease? Read here
COVID-infected elderly individuals have a high chance of developing Alzheimer’s disease within a year. a new study has revealed that have been following over six million patients in the US. The risk is about 50-80% higher, the study said adding that women who are 85 years or older are at the highest risk.
The research was published in the Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease last week.
Can COVID trigger Alzheimer’s disease?
The study cited, it is unclear whether COVID-19 triggers new development of Alzheimer’s disease or accelerates its emergence.
“The factors that play into the development of Alzheimer’s disease have been poorly understood, but two pieces considered important are prior infections, especially viral infections, and inflammation,” said Pamela Davis, from the Case Western Reserve School of Medicine, US.
“Since infection with SARS-CoV-2 has been associated with central nervous system abnormalities including inflammation, we wanted to test whether, even in the short term, COVID could lead to increased diagnoses,” she said.
The researchers analysed the anonymous electronic health records of 6.2 million adults 65 and older in the US who received medical treatment between February 2020 and May 2021 and had no prior diagnosis of Alzheimer’s disease. More than 400,000 people were enrolled in the COVID-19 study group, while 5.8 million were in the non-infected group.
“If this increase in new diagnoses of Alzheimer’s disease is sustained, the wave of patients with a disease currently without a cure will be substantial, and could further strain our long-term care resources,” Davis said.
“Alzheimer’s disease is a serious and challenging disease, and we thought we had turned some of the tide on it by reducing general risk factors such as hypertension, heart disease, obesity and a sedentary lifestyle,” she added.
(With inputs from agencies)
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COVID-infected elderly individuals have a high chance of developing Alzheimer’s disease within a year. a new study has revealed that have been following over six million patients in the US. The risk is about 50-80% higher, the study said adding that women who are 85 years or older are at the highest risk.
The research was published in the Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease last week.
Can COVID trigger Alzheimer’s disease?
The study cited, it is unclear whether COVID-19 triggers new development of Alzheimer’s disease or accelerates its emergence.
“The factors that play into the development of Alzheimer’s disease have been poorly understood, but two pieces considered important are prior infections, especially viral infections, and inflammation,” said Pamela Davis, from the Case Western Reserve School of Medicine, US.
“Since infection with SARS-CoV-2 has been associated with central nervous system abnormalities including inflammation, we wanted to test whether, even in the short term, COVID could lead to increased diagnoses,” she said.
The researchers analysed the anonymous electronic health records of 6.2 million adults 65 and older in the US who received medical treatment between February 2020 and May 2021 and had no prior diagnosis of Alzheimer’s disease. More than 400,000 people were enrolled in the COVID-19 study group, while 5.8 million were in the non-infected group.
“If this increase in new diagnoses of Alzheimer’s disease is sustained, the wave of patients with a disease currently without a cure will be substantial, and could further strain our long-term care resources,” Davis said.
“Alzheimer’s disease is a serious and challenging disease, and we thought we had turned some of the tide on it by reducing general risk factors such as hypertension, heart disease, obesity and a sedentary lifestyle,” she added.
(With inputs from agencies)
Download The Mint News App to get Daily Market Updates.
More
Less