Long covid has pushed brain fog into the spotlight

“This is the moment when the public and the medical community start to realize this is real. This is what happens after certain infections,” said a professor of immunobiology at Yale University. review article About covid-19 related cognitive impairment.

“I think it’s time for them to be recognized,” she said.

How brain fog overlaps with ‘chemobrain’ and Alzheimer’s disease

research show The majority of people experiencing long-lasting COVID-19 symptoms report brain fog (a set of symptoms that include slowing attention, concentration, memory, and processing speed). Iwasaki and Michel Monger, a professor of neurology at Stanford University, Explored over 100 studies Associated with post-covid cognitive impairment.

They outlined six potential causes of covid-related cognitive dysfunction and concluded that a common possible cause is inflammation of the lungs that causes inflammation of the brain. nerve cell dysfunction.

Patients who have experienced brain fog caused by a variety of conditions say its effects can be life-altering and devastating. Some have had to reschedule their work or stop working altogether. And nearly everyone said they had to rely on their notebooks. That means I maintain a to-do list that includes the most basic tasks like remembering to eat.

Depending on the underlying cause, there are treatments for brain fog, ranging from exercise protocols to cognitive rehabilitation, but no method has proven effective in all patients.

How long Covid will reshape the brain and how to treat it

Dennis Colson, a neurologist at the University of Pennsylvania Penn Neuro COVID Clinic, said doctors have evaluated symptoms, including brain fog, in about 350 Covid-19 patients since the clinic opened last year. He said people uniformly appreciate having the opportunity to speak with a doctor who understands their condition.

“Am I like everyone else? Do you see people like me? I get that question every time,” Colson said. “Most of the time I say, ‘Yes. You’re not alone.'”

Edwin Hall, a 65-year-old Navy veteran from Fulton, Missouri, spent 12 days in a medically-induced coma due to covid in the summer of 2021, breathing with the help of a ventilator. I was. Doctors also found possible signs of a stroke, but they weren’t sure of the timing.

It is said that he is still fighting Brain Fog. He searched for words to describe it.

He recalls an incident during a trip to Walmart shortly after being hospitalized and blames it on Brain Fog. He and his wife went down separate passages, and once she was out of sight, he couldn’t remember where she was going or what he thought he would do with it.

“I had a massive panic attack on the spot,” he said, adding that he was clinging to a pillar and waiting for his wife to find him.

Earlier this year, he was forced to retire as an application systems manager for the Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education.

Another long-term Corona patient in Colorado Springs, 52-year-old Dave Northstein, said he could still work remotely at a car dealership but only had enough hours a week to pay his premiums. rice field.

His biggest challenges are word recall and short-term memory.

After being diagnosed with the coronavirus for a long time in March, Nosstein said his brain was so fuzzy he had to make detailed to-do lists to get through the day. “It may sound silly, but it included things like ‘Make sure to eat breakfast’, ‘Feed the dog’, ‘Receive the mail’, ‘Do the laundry’ and ‘Wash the dishes’. he said.

He is currently working with a cognitive therapist who is not covered by insurance to try to address his disability.

Brain fog can also affect people with myalgic encephalomyelitis (also known as chronic fatigue syndrome), fibromyalgia, postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome (POTS), Lyme disease, and depression. Yes, experts say.

Patients who have undergone chemotherapy also report brain fog, often referred to as “chemobrain.”

Although varying in severity and duration, symptoms “can adversely affect professional, family, and social life and reduce quality of life,” says Neuropsychologists at the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center. Professor and Chair Jeffrey Wefel said. .

Angela Hernandez, 36, of Houston, said she was over months of brain fog beginning in 2018 after four rounds of chemotherapy for ovarian cancer.

“Do you dream and wake up and remember most of what you were dreaming, but as the seconds go by the dream becomes more and more distant?” she said. “It feels like it always does.”

For Kelsey Botti, it started with a concussion from a snowboarding accident in 2012. Then Botti, his 32-year-old physical therapist from Pittsburgh, was diagnosed with his POTS, a syndrome often characterized by a fast heart rate, low blood pressure. It often causes lightheadedness, lightheadedness, fainting, and sometimes brain fog.

“I wanted to cry because I was so grateful that someone had helped me and had the diagnosis and instructions,” she said. I wanted to cry too.”

Botti underwent months of therapy, including medication and a controlled exercise program, to build tolerance. Along the way she had crashes and emergency room visits, but her symptoms improved, she said.

One of the challenges in treating brain fog is that patients may look healthy but feel sick, says Robert Wilson, a neurologist at the Cleveland Clinic Neurology Institute. “If they don’t find the right medical team to understand them, they will move away from health care, have less access to health care, and have fewer opportunities,” he said.

Barriers to Effective Care of Patients with Brain Fog “It’s a stigma,” said Mount Sinai neuropsychologist Jacqueline Becker. studied cognitive impairment After Covid.

“The stigma is when doctors say, ‘No, you’re young. Don’t worry. You’ll get better.’ she said. “And on the other side of that are patients who are really struggling to function.”

Rachael Grossman, 22, from Chagrin Falls, Ohio, said she started having symptoms of brain fog after getting whooping cough when she was 17. In my head, I said it was unsettling,” she said.

Two years later, in 2019, she was diagnosed with POTS. Grossman is currently working as a part-time medical clerk at Baldwin, where she majored in neuroscience at Wallace College. She said she must find a way to overcome her own “haze.”

On a bad day, you may spend hours studying for exams, you may not be able to perform as well as you would like at work, or you may feel uncomfortable driving because you are afraid of being dizzy.

“Sadly, it continues to affect me, but I’m just finding ways to get around it,” she said.

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