I was in two minds where to post this but in the end decided it needed it's own thread.

It's very gloomy reading, not least because if you are suffering from/or suspect someone you know may be suffering from the symptoms, then you/they can take the data to the clinician so they are fully aware of where the current science stands... most clinicians don't have the time to read all the latest peer reviewed papers so they likely won't be aware of the signs to be looking out for, at least not at this early a stage.

COVID-19 infections increase risk of long-term brain problems
https://medicine.wustl.edu/news/covid-19-infections-increase-risk-of-long-term-brain-problems/

Possibly even more alarming is this:

Possible 69% higher risk of Alzheimer's for older COVID survivors
https://www.cidrap.umn.edu/news-perspective/2022/09/possible-69-higher-risk-alzheimers-older-covid-survivors

Dr John Campbell from the UK has just posted a YouTube video on the latter detailing his thoughts on the latter link above.
Post covid Alzheimer's
https://youtu.be/M5ExGpJS_PA

I clicked Submit instead of Preview again so rather than edit the post...

I have a question i'd like to ask of the authors of the papers, do those statistics apply equally to symptomatic and asymptomatic people who tested positive, or does it not matter?

From a personal point of view not related to the papers above, I do take a certain amount of solace that the horrendous experience i've been through regarding symptoms are finally being acknowledged... the push back that i've had from family, friends and work and elsewhere who refused to take on board what i was saying was the truth is finally being acknowledged by science.

Fyi, my wife and this Forum, not that either of you have done anything to warrant needing one have a free pass because she and you were all as much a part of my journey as much as i was and even i struggled to believe what was happening to me at times!

To the doubters and haters who attacked me (NOT here on CH, i'm talking elsewhere on the web) for even suggesting that Covid-19 has no limits because i'm living it, hang your heads in shame because the scientifically proven evidence is now emerging.

There is more i want to say on that but best i don't, you get the idea.

I've been following the news about the COVID/dementia/Alzheimer's link. It doesn't surprise me, especially as recent studies about Alzheimer's are pointing to a potential cause being a prior viral infection. My Mom passed away from Alzheimer's and it is truly a terrible condition.
One of the common symptoms, as you certainly can attest, of COVID into Long COVID is "brain fog." This virus is a real threat despite the fact that so many people are acting like it's nothing more than a Flu these days and there's no reason to be cautious. Screw that -- I'm going to keep wearing my N95 mask in public places.
It will certainly be interesting to learn more as more data is analyzed. I have the same questions as you about the statistics.

_________________
stephen boots
Microsoft MVP 2004 - 2020
"Life's always an adventure with computers!"

Steve, I'm sorry to hear about your mother, my mother-in-law passed away from dementia about 8 months before the pandemic began and even though she lived about 300 miles away we did visit a couple of times a year and it really was very alarming to see how much she'd deteriorated each time we visited.
At that time i couldn't even begin to envisage how she felt let alone what she must be feeling but when Long Covid was running rife within me i think i got a little insight into what it must have felt like for her and it was very alarming... so much so that i'm still terrified that some of the symptoms i was suffering from were a form of dementia that i might never recover from and be left with for the rest of my life. Thankfully i've made a very slow recovery from that place but it's still in the back of my mind that maybe they'll return if i get re-infected.

Dr John Campbell has tonight uploaded his latest video covering a paper that was published Sept 22nd on Nature.com titled "Long-term neurologic outcomes of COVID-19" and it's findings are quite simply, shocking... the paper he's talking about only covers the time frame of the original Wuhan variant so it may or may not be relevant to later strains/variants of the virus.
I haven't read the paper yet but i have watched Dr Campbell's video and as soon as i finish this post i will read the paper in full, on the one hand i find it a shock but on the other hand it does validate nearly everything i've said about the neurological symptoms i've talked about that happened to me... not that what's happened to me is in itself important, but it should be taken as a wake up call that this did happen, and what could potentially still happen to anyone.

Long-term neurologic outcomes of COVID-19
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41591-022-02001-z

Common post covid neurology
42% increased chance of developing a neuro problem after covid, equating to 7% of those infected.
https://youtu.be/yF4PebYeYpU

This is covered in the links above but sometimes simple layman terms are required for the penny to drop:

The Coming COVID Brain Wreck?
A new study adds to concerns about the severity and scope of neurological damage the virus can cause.
https://thetyee.ca/Analysis/2022/09/28/COVID-Brain-Wreck/

I hope i'm wrong but everything about me says when history looks back on this pandemic it will be recorded as anything but a blip in human medical history, if i'm wrong i will be the first to hold up my hand say i got it wrong, but i don't see that day coming anytime soon.

For those that might doubt me, i lived and experienced it first hand, there is nothing that clinicians can teach me about it, all they can do now is explain why and how it happened to me, something that's no longer important given how important survival was at the time.

Looking back, what a journey.

A long and lonely road that i had to take on my own, a journey that has to be experienced to be understood, one that i would never want anyone else to experience.

One that i want to be able to let go of, yet still can't, at least not yet.

What an odd journey i find myself on.