The journal Alzheimer’s and Dementia has published a paper on the possible bidirectional relationship between dementia and COVID-19. Cases of cognitive impairment after a SARS-CoV-2 infection are being more and more recognized as an acute and (possibly) also long-term condition.
The identification of reliable biomarkers for COVID-19-caused cognitive impairment is still in its early shoes, but the researchers report that there is already emerging evidence that SARS-CoV-2 could preferentially target the frontal lobes when spreading in the brain. This is also backed up by “behavioral and dysexecutive symptoms, fronto-temporal hypoperfusion on MRI, EEG slowing in frontal regions, and frontal hypometabolism on 18F-FDG-PET scans,” as the team notes.
Furthermore, they highlight that people with dementia (as well as the people taking care of them), have been greatly impacted by the disruption of their care caused by COVID-19. People with dementia have experienced worsening of cognitive, behavioral, and psychological symptoms, and the rate of COVID-19-related deaths is disproportionately high among cognitively impaired people.
Finally, a multitude of factors, including troubles in remembering and adopting safeguarding procedures, age, comorbidities, residing in care homes, and poorer access to hospital standard of care can play a role in the increased morbidity and mortality. At the same time, the team underlines that non-pharmacological interventions as well as new technologies have shown a potential for the management of patients with dementia, and for the support of their caregivers.
https://content.iospress.com/articles/journal-of-alzheimers-disease/jad210335
