the Virologist Jeremy Rossman (Jeremy Rossman) from the University of Kent in the UK revealed how the coronavirus can affect the brain of people and cause neurological symptoms. About the risk of infection to the Central nervous system writes the Conversation.
According to the scientist, the vast majority of cases COVID-19 is a respiratory infection that causes fever, sore throat, cough and, in more serious cases, shortness of breath and respiratory disorders. Coronavirus is capable of hitting and other tissues, causing symptoms such as vomiting, diarrhea, abnormal heart function and blood clotting.
However, the infection affects the brain. Describes the cases of patients with COVID-19 Guillain-Barre syndrome, when the immune system reacting to infection, mistakenly attacks cells of peripheral nerves. First, it leads to muscle weakness and then paralysis. In other cases, the coronavirus has caused severe encephalitis with inflammation and swelling of the brain, and acute violation of blood circulation in brain (stroke). Overall, neurological symptoms of varying severity are observed in 36 percent of patients who complain of headache, dizziness, loss of taste and smell, seizures and hallucinations. These symptoms are often observed in severe disease and persisted after recovery.
SARS-CoV-2 is able to cross the blood-brain barrier that separates blood and the Central nervous system, and directly infect the brain. Neurological symptoms occur either due to the impact of the virus on the nervous tissue, either from excessive activation of the immune system. Another way of penetration of infection into the brain can serve as olfactory neurons in the nose.
Infect the brain and other pathogens, for example viruses of influenza, measles, respiratory syncytial virus and seasonal coronaviruses, such as HCoV-OC43. The article States that getting infection in the Central nervous system is relatively rare.
