A team of researchers has begun looking at how COVID-19 affects the brain, and what they’re finding is raising some red flags. The team is based out of the Georgia State University and has focused on how mice are impacted when purposefully given the COVID-19 virus. They’ve discovered that there are a whole host of health issues, even when the mice do not have any signs of infection in their lungs.
The research team found that even when the mice were able to clear their lungs of the virus, there was still an impact upon their brains. This had the potential to lead to severe illness. It also might explain why there are such a wide range of symptoms when humans have this virus. It doesn’t just impact us in the way that we have come to expect–as a lung issue. It impacts us in many ways, such as what we’ve seen with people losing their sense of taste and smell.
Granted, this research has focused completely on mice. It’s unclear how humans will be impacted, but lab mice tend to be a good first line of defense for understanding how humans might be impacted because it is so much easier and faster to examine these types of things. The hope is that this research will lead to a deeper understanding of how humans can be kept safe even if such an infection were to occur.
Unfortunately, the truth is that we don’t know a ton about what the virus behind COVID-19 will do over the long haul. There is a lot that we know, but the virus is still too new for us to have definitive bits of information when it comes to things like brain health. Our best scientists can make projections based on the available data and looking at other viruses and similar situations, but these are projections, and not definite facts. Looking at animal models can give us another clue on how to protect ourselves and our family members, though. Some individuals do have ethical concerns about animal testing, and that is fine, but overall, they serve a very noble purpose because of the information that they give doctors about human health.
This is a scary time for all of us. COVID-19 has changed the way that we live and it’s changed the way that we think about living. It’s something that none of us have ever experienced before, but it’s something that we are all coping with, in one way or another. Whatever your situation might be, this has likely been a trying time.
We’d love to help you and your family however we can. If you have questions about senior care or what that might look like in terms of the pandemic, we can help answer your questions and address your concerns. This is exactly why we offer our free consultation service. Just call to get started.
COVID has been tough, and there’s a lot to learn about it still. In the meantime, we can help you take every precaution possible to help keep your family safe.
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