this post was submitted on 28 Dec 2023
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Long COVID: New Info on Who Is Most Likely to Get It (www.medscape.com)
submitted 11 months ago* (last edited 11 months ago) by MicroWave@lemmy.world to c/health@lemmy.world
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The [COVID-19] pandemic may no longer be a global public health emergency, but millions continue to struggle with the aftermath: Long COVID. New research and clinical anecdotes suggest that certain individuals are more likely to be afflicted by the condition, nearly 4 years after the virus emerged.

People with a history of allergies, anxiety or depression, arthritis, and autoimmune diseases and women are among those who appear more vulnerable to developing long COVID, said doctors who specialize in treating the condition.

Many patients with long COVID struggle with debilitating fatigue, brain fog, and cognitive impairment. The condition is also characterized by a catalog of other symptoms that may be difficult to recognize as long COVID, experts said. That's especially true when patients may not mention seemingly unrelated information, such as underlying health conditions that might make them more vulnerable. This makes screening for certain conditions and investigating every symptom especially important.

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[–] Bonesince1997@lemmy.world 9 points 11 months ago (3 children)

I'd like to know why conditions such as anxiety and depression make you more suseptible.

[–] MicroWave@lemmy.world 14 points 11 months ago

From the article:

People with a preexisting history of anxiety or depression also appear to be at a higher risk for long COVID, Bayley said, noting that patients with these conditions appear more vulnerable to brain fog and other difficulties brought on by COVID infection. Earlier research found biochemical evidence of brain inflammation that correlates with symptoms of anxiety in patients with long COVID.

"We know that depression is related to neurotransmitters like adrenaline and serotonin," Bayley said. "The chronic inflammation that's associated with COVID — this will make people feel more depressed because they're not getting the neurotransmitters in their brain releasing at the right times."

[–] FrostyTrichs@lemmy.world 7 points 11 months ago (1 children)

Not a doctor or in any way qualified to speculate but my guess would be if you're already having issues with chemical imbalances in the brain COVID has an easier time getting its hooks in deep so to speak. It seems like it would be easier to introduce long term chaos on a brain that already struggles with daily events than a "normally" functioning one, but I'm just guessing.

[–] Bonesince1997@lemmy.world 2 points 11 months ago

A sound argument for sure.

[–] Chetzemoka@startrek.website 2 points 11 months ago* (last edited 11 months ago)

Likely underlying neuroinflammation. We're learning more and more about the role of neuroinflammation in psychiatric conditions. It's well-known that a lot of psychiatric medications have anti-inflammatory effects, and there have always been competing hypotheses to the monoamine hypothesis.

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8490908/#:~:text=The%20neuroinflammation%20hypothesis%20of%20depression,proinflammatory%20cytokines%20and%20several%20metabolites

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6953590/

https://www.theguardian.com/science/brain-flapping/2017/jul/10/how-do-antidepressants-actually-work