A new study suggests that damage to the brainstem, often called the brain’s “control center,” could explain the long-lasting physical and mental effects experienced by some people after severe COVID-19 infection.
Researchers from the Universities of Cambridge and Oxford used ultra-high-resolution MRI scanners to observe how the virus affects the brain, offering insights into the lingering symptoms many patients report, such as breathlessness, fatigue, and anxiety.
The research involved scanning the brains of 30 people who had been hospitalized with severe COVID-19 during the early months of the pandemic, before vaccines were available.
By using powerful 7-Tesla (7T) MRI machines, the team was able to detect inflammation in the brainstem, a region responsible for controlling essential functions like breathing, heart rate, and blood pressure.
The results, published in the journal Brain, provide a deeper understanding of how COVID-19 affects the brain and may offer clues about the causes of long COVID.
The brainstem connects the brain to the spinal cord and plays a crucial role in regulating vital bodily functions. Damage to this area can have serious consequences, including difficulties with breathing and circulation.
“The brainstem acts as a critical junction between our conscious awareness and the body’s automatic processes,” explained Professor James Rowe, one of the co-leaders of the research.
He noted that by studying changes in this part of the brain, scientists hope to better understand and treat the long-term effects of COVID-19.
Before this study, it was nearly impossible to examine the brainstem in living people due to its small size and difficult position deep within the brain.
Typically, researchers only gained insights into brainstem damage through post-mortem examinations of people who had died from severe COVID-19.
These earlier studies had shown inflammation in the brainstem, which was thought to result from an immune response to the virus, rather than the virus directly attacking the brain.
Using the advanced 7T MRI scanners, the researchers were able to observe the same kind of inflammation in living patients.
According to Dr. Catarina Rua, the study’s first author, “Things happening in and around the brainstem are vital for quality of life, but it had been impossible to scan the inflammation in living people before.
With the 7T scanners, we can now detect these changes and learn more about how the immune system reacts to the virus in the brain.”
In the early days of the pandemic, many patients who had been hospitalized with severe COVID-19 reported ongoing symptoms such as extreme tiredness, difficulty breathing, and chest pain.
The researchers believe these symptoms could be linked to damage in key areas of the brainstem, particularly regions like the medulla oblongata, pons, and midbrain, which are responsible for regulating breathing and other vital functions.
The study found that these areas showed signs of neuroinflammation—an immune response in the brain—weeks after the patients had been discharged from the hospital.
This inflammation could be responsible for the long-lasting symptoms that some patients experience, commonly referred to as “long COVID.”
According to Dr. Rua, “The fact that we see abnormalities in parts of the brainstem that control breathing strongly suggests that the persistent symptoms people report may be caused by inflammation in this critical area.”
In addition to the physical effects, the study also shed light on the psychiatric symptoms linked to severe COVID-19. The brainstem plays a role in monitoring not only breathing but also feelings of fatigue and anxiety.
The researchers found that patients who had the most severe immune responses also reported higher levels of anxiety and depression.
“Mental health is deeply connected to brain health,” explained Rowe, “and changes in the brainstem may contribute to the mental health challenges that some COVID-19 survivors face.”
The findings from this study could have broader implications beyond COVID-19. By better understanding how inflammation affects the brainstem, researchers hope to gain insights into other conditions, such as multiple sclerosis (MS) and dementia, which also involve inflammation of the brain.
Additionally, the 7T MRI technology used in this study could help monitor the effectiveness of treatments for various brain diseases.
The collaboration behind this study was particularly impressive, given the difficulties of conducting research at the height of the pandemic.
Dr. Rua praised the teamwork involved, noting, “This was an incredible effort from multiple researchers during a very challenging time. I was amazed at how well the 7T scanners worked and how everyone came together to make this research possible.”
If you care about brain health, please read studies about how the Mediterranean diet could protect your brain health, and Omega-3 fats and carotenoid supplements could improve memory.
For more information about brain health, please see recent studies about antioxidants that could help reduce dementia risk, and higher magnesium intake could help benefit brain health.
The study findings can be found in Brain.
Copyright © 2024 Knowridge Science Report. All rights reserved.
