Scans show covid-19 patients experience wide variety of brain abnormalities

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Researchers found that one-third of patients given a brain EEG showed abnormal imaging in the frontal lobe. Photo: Gorodenkoff, Shutterstock

(Jack Dunhill/ IFL Science) — Covid-19 doesn’t seem to act like most other viruses. Since the pandemic began, an increasing number of strange neurological symptoms have appeared in Covid-19 patients alongside the typical flu-like symptoms, and doctors are striving to understand exactly what the virus does to the brain.

In a systematic review study published in the Seizure: European Journal of Epilepsy, researchers compiled 84 Covid-19 studies that contained electroencephalograms (EEG) to get a better understanding of the ways in which the brain changes as a result of virus infection. They found one-third of patients given an EEG showed abnormal imaging in the frontal lobe of the brain.

An electroencephalogram is a test that detects the usual rhythmic patterns and activity of the brain, in this case, whether they change during and after infection. Scientists are aware that Covid-19 is correlated with abnormal EEGs readings, but there is a lack of both understanding and consistency of these findings. Neurological abnormalities can have serious and lasting effects, and understanding them is paramount to effective Covid-19 treatment. (…)

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