New Covid study from UK shows brain damage - what do you make of this?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Here’s an article about a young (26), healthy woman who suffered brain inflammation after having Covid

https://health.ucsd.edu/news/releases/Pages/2021-08-09-young-healthy-woman-suffers-brain-inflammation-after-mild-covid-19-infection.aspx

The article talks about how patients often experience neurological problems, such as headaches, anxiety, depression and cognitive issues, which can persist long after other symptoms have resolved. The woman in the article had multiple lesions in the right frontoparietal region of the brain, which is involved in motor control and sensation of the left side of the body. A biopsy revealed CNS lymphocytic vasculitis — inflammation or swelling of blood vessels in the brain and spine.

Webmd? Really?
Anecdotal

Yet still could happen to a young person you know. But keep it up with the b*tchy dismissiveness.

How about from WebMD… “More proof Covid severely affects the brain”
https://www.webmd.com/lung/coronavirus

We don't need to convince someone who likely already had Covid and doesn't want to acknowledge any of this research.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP here. So anyone else with young kids really struggling to decide what to do? I could keep my kid home but it would be very hard. But it feels selfish not to, at least for a few more weeks.

I would definitely keep them home because it's going to be a mess, and school will very likely close anyway, so the education benefits are minimal but the risk of infection is high. You are far from alone - many parents are keeping them home, and many doctors are saying it's a valid action.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP here. So anyone else with young kids really struggling to decide what to do? I could keep my kid home but it would be very hard. But it feels selfish not to, at least for a few more weeks.

I'm keeping her home. I just called it when I realized that the main compelling reason not to was to avoid discomfort and embarrassment on my part. (This is in our specific situation.)

Now, I've never been terribly afraid of the consequences of her getting covid (she's 8)-- and especially less so now that she's vaccinated. Although things like what's discussed in this thread have always been in the back of my mind when I said "We don't know the long term consequences and I'd rather avoid it."

But it's just not worth it for me to send her to school on Monday, even just considering she could help spread it at her school and in the vulnerable community if she does get it. Im betting on the fact that her school will likely go virtual in a week or so anyway. But either way, I can always change my mind and send her back at any time. If she gets COVID, which she would not be unlikely to, I can't take that back. And though I'm sure she'll catch it one day, and I've made peace with that, I'd rather that happen during a time that not literally almost everyone is getting it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP here. So anyone else with young kids really struggling to decide what to do? I could keep my kid home but it would be very hard. But it feels selfish not to, at least for a few more weeks.

I'm keeping her home. I just called it when I realized that the main compelling reason not to was to avoid discomfort and embarrassment on my part. (This is in our specific situation.)

Now, I've never been terribly afraid of the consequences of her getting covid (she's 8)-- and especially less so now that she's vaccinated. Although things like what's discussed in this thread have always been in the back of my mind when I said "We don't know the long term consequences and I'd rather avoid it."

But it's just not worth it for me to send her to school on Monday, even just considering she could help spread it at her school and in the vulnerable community if she does get it. Im betting on the fact that her school will likely go virtual in a week or so anyway. But either way, I can always change my mind and send her back at any time. If she gets COVID, which she would not be unlikely to, I can't take that back. And though I'm sure she'll catch it one day, and I've made peace with that, I'd rather that happen during a time that not literally almost everyone is getting it.

Covid isn’t going to disappear. At some point in their life they’ll probably get covid.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP here. So anyone else with young kids really struggling to decide what to do? I could keep my kid home but it would be very hard. But it feels selfish not to, at least for a few more weeks.

I'm keeping her home. I just called it when I realized that the main compelling reason not to was to avoid discomfort and embarrassment on my part. (This is in our specific situation.)

Now, I've never been terribly afraid of the consequences of her getting covid (she's 8)-- and especially less so now that she's vaccinated. Although things like what's discussed in this thread have always been in the back of my mind when I said "We don't know the long term consequences and I'd rather avoid it."

But it's just not worth it for me to send her to school on Monday, even just considering she could help spread it at her school and in the vulnerable community if she does get it. Im betting on the fact that her school will likely go virtual in a week or so anyway. But either way, I can always change my mind and send her back at any time. If she gets COVID, which she would not be unlikely to, I can't take that back. And though I'm sure she'll catch it one day, and I've made peace with that, I'd rather that happen during a time that not literally almost everyone is getting it.

Much respect to your decision. Thanks for sharing your thinking!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Happened during the Great influenza, but they didn't discover the link with viral Parkinson's until much later. Now researchers know to look out for this sort of thing. (Source: my great grandmother had Parkinson's that was attributed to her bout of influenza during 1918.)

https://massivesci.com/articles/viral-parkinsonism-parkinsons-disease-motor-neuron-substantia-nigra-spanish-flu-weev/
Epidemiologists have determined that Spanish Influenza survivors have a 2-3x higher risk of developing Parkinson's Disease, now termed Viral Parkinsonism, compared to those who did not come into contact with the virus.

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4684089/
Given the recent paper by Jang et al. on “A Highly Pathogenic H5N1 Influenza Virus” which reported a novel animal model of parkinsonism, we aimed to perform a complete historical review of the 20th and 21st century literature on parkinsonism and neurological manifestations of influenza.

Not scare tactics, this is basically common knowledge..

The studies on Parkinson's disease and relationship to influenza, avian flu, Hep C etc are pretty compelling. My sister is a scientist in the UK and says, other than risk of death based on any underlying conditions and personal vulnerability, this is the main reason you should avoid COVID. The neurological effects, anosmia, etc. seem to be key indicators of such a connection, which are not seen with other common corona viruses. I once had a strep throat diagnosis which I treated immediately with antibiotics, but ultimately developed into acute rheumatic disease--so i know first hand that a common illness can have surprising and long term effects well after the initial symptoms resolve.

Yes, that has been my main reason for avoiding it as well. I am so tired of the endless threads on here of people saying "your risk is low", "it's just a cold", "after I got it I realized it was no big deal and why did I waste time living in fear" yada yada, when you know these people are not looking at any of the research, and are likely the first to dismiss it because they are ready to be over the pandemic. My biggest area of concern is what is going to happen next week with Omicron infecting more kids than ever. Already, 1 in 10 kids in America have had Covid. After Omicron, that will likely be much larger. If all these kids get Lewy Bodies, how does that manifest in the coming decades?

I’m with you. I think there’s basically a division between people who are willing to delay gratification and those who simply cannot. I’m not a gambler in any aspect of my life and certainly not with my health and that of my family. I am able to carve out and retain the things that are meaningful to me and leave the rest. Basically you are a grasshopper or an ant.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP here. So anyone else with young kids really struggling to decide what to do? I could keep my kid home but it would be very hard. But it feels selfish not to, at least for a few more weeks.

I would definitely keep them home because it's going to be a mess, and school will very likely close anyway, so the education benefits are minimal but the risk of infection is high. You are far from alone - many parents are keeping them home, and many doctors are saying it's a valid action.

Just popping in to say we are also struggling with this. I am so reluctant to disrupt school more for my earl elementary kid, but I’m super nervous about next week, have an unvaccinated younger child at home and although healthy myself as far as I know, I have had reactive airway and needed an inhaler in the past. We are leaning toward keeping our kid home for at least the first few days. If it seems to go ok, maybe then we will reconsider. I’m worried about telling the school, though. I don’t know how strict they will be on unexcused absences.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Happened during the Great influenza, but they didn't discover the link with viral Parkinson's until much later. Now researchers know to look out for this sort of thing. (Source: my great grandmother had Parkinson's that was attributed to her bout of influenza during 1918.)

https://massivesci.com/articles/viral-parkinsonism-parkinsons-disease-motor-neuron-substantia-nigra-spanish-flu-weev/
Epidemiologists have determined that Spanish Influenza survivors have a 2-3x higher risk of developing Parkinson's Disease, now termed Viral Parkinsonism, compared to those who did not come into contact with the virus.

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4684089/
Given the recent paper by Jang et al. on “A Highly Pathogenic H5N1 Influenza Virus” which reported a novel animal model of parkinsonism, we aimed to perform a complete historical review of the 20th and 21st century literature on parkinsonism and neurological manifestations of influenza.

Not scare tactics, this is basically common knowledge..

The studies on Parkinson's disease and relationship to influenza, avian flu, Hep C etc are pretty compelling. My sister is a scientist in the UK and says, other than risk of death based on any underlying conditions and personal vulnerability, this is the main reason you should avoid COVID. The neurological effects, anosmia, etc. seem to be key indicators of such a connection, which are not seen with other common corona viruses. I once had a strep throat diagnosis which I treated immediately with antibiotics, but ultimately developed into acute rheumatic disease--so i know first hand that a common illness can have surprising and long term effects well after the initial symptoms resolve.

Yes, that has been my main reason for avoiding it as well. I am so tired of the endless threads on here of people saying "your risk is low", "it's just a cold", "after I got it I realized it was no big deal and why did I waste time living in fear" yada yada, when you know these people are not looking at any of the research, and are likely the first to dismiss it because they are ready to be over the pandemic. My biggest area of concern is what is going to happen next week with Omicron infecting more kids than ever. Already, 1 in 10 kids in America have had Covid. After Omicron, that will likely be much larger. If all these kids get Lewy Bodies, how does that manifest in the coming decades?

I’m with you. I think there’s basically a division between people who are willing to delay gratification and those who simply cannot. I’m not a gambler in any aspect of my life and certainly not with my health and that of my family. I am able to carve out and retain the things that are meaningful to me and leave the rest. Basically you are a grasshopper or an ant.

Your kid will catch it, if not next week then next month or next year or five years, but they will catch it

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Happened during the Great influenza, but they didn't discover the link with viral Parkinson's until much later. Now researchers know to look out for this sort of thing. (Source: my great grandmother had Parkinson's that was attributed to her bout of influenza during 1918.)

https://massivesci.com/articles/viral-parkinsonism-parkinsons-disease-motor-neuron-substantia-nigra-spanish-flu-weev/
Epidemiologists have determined that Spanish Influenza survivors have a 2-3x higher risk of developing Parkinson's Disease, now termed Viral Parkinsonism, compared to those who did not come into contact with the virus.

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4684089/
Given the recent paper by Jang et al. on “A Highly Pathogenic H5N1 Influenza Virus” which reported a novel animal model of parkinsonism, we aimed to perform a complete historical review of the 20th and 21st century literature on parkinsonism and neurological manifestations of influenza.

Not scare tactics, this is basically common knowledge..

The studies on Parkinson's disease and relationship to influenza, avian flu, Hep C etc are pretty compelling. My sister is a scientist in the UK and says, other than risk of death based on any underlying conditions and personal vulnerability, this is the main reason you should avoid COVID. The neurological effects, anosmia, etc. seem to be key indicators of such a connection, which are not seen with other common corona viruses. I once had a strep throat diagnosis which I treated immediately with antibiotics, but ultimately developed into acute rheumatic disease--so i know first hand that a common illness can have surprising and long term effects well after the initial symptoms resolve.

Yes, that has been my main reason for avoiding it as well. I am so tired of the endless threads on here of people saying "your risk is low", "it's just a cold", "after I got it I realized it was no big deal and why did I waste time living in fear" yada yada, when you know these people are not looking at any of the research, and are likely the first to dismiss it because they are ready to be over the pandemic. My biggest area of concern is what is going to happen next week with Omicron infecting more kids than ever. Already, 1 in 10 kids in America have had Covid. After Omicron, that will likely be much larger. If all these kids get Lewy Bodies, how does that manifest in the coming decades?

I’m with you. I think there’s basically a division between people who are willing to delay gratification and those who simply cannot. I’m not a gambler in any aspect of my life and certainly not with my health and that of my family. I am able to carve out and retain the things that are meaningful to me and leave the rest. Basically you are a grasshopper or an ant.

Your kid will catch it, if not next week then next month or next year or five years, but they will catch it

+1. It’s unavoidable at this point. Your whole family will have it sooner or later.

[Anonymous]

Here’s the thing. Covid is so rampant and widespread at this point, if it actually is causing significant brain damage and future brain disease in everyone it infects, basically the vast majority of the population will have it. It will lead to an apocalyptic situation where there will be more with dementia or whatever brain impact than not, and not enough healthy to care for those who are not. I guess watch a post-apocalyptic movie and decide if you want to be one of the survivors. If it’s really that bad, I guess that’s what we’ll be dealing with in the future, because Covid will infect mostly everyone.

[Anonymous]

OP, why is your school age child unvaccinated? I’m genuinely confused.

[Anonymous]

It may be unavoidable at the point, but I guess I’d rather do my best to avoid it for as long as possible. For one I’d rather not roll the dice when literally everyone else is sick too. And moreover they are learning more about how to treat it every day, getting new meds, ramped up medication supply, and there’s work on a polyvalent (? I think that was the word) vaccine by the Army that’s in phase 2, I think. So I want to put it off as long possible. Not hiding in my house level, but put off stuff that can be reasonably put off - at least for the next month or so to see how this goes. I’m in the camp of being pretty concerned by the brain and vascular aspects of the disease, though I understand that it may present in the immediate term as a bad cold or flu.

[Anonymous]

It's probably true. People don't need to be super smart to function pretty well in society. So many things kill your brain cells, including a glass of wine at dinner, headboard banging sex, and even video games so why not just live it up and zombie out?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It may be unavoidable at the point, but I guess I’d rather do my best to avoid it for as long as possible. For one I’d rather not roll the dice when literally everyone else is sick too. And moreover they are learning more about how to treat it every day, getting new meds, ramped up medication supply, and there’s work on a polyvalent (? I think that was the word) vaccine by the Army that’s in phase 2, I think. So I want to put it off as long possible. Not hiding in my house level, but put off stuff that can be reasonably put off - at least for the next month or so to see how this goes. I’m in the camp of being pretty concerned by the brain and vascular aspects of the disease, though I understand that it may present in the immediate term as a bad cold or flu.

But how are any of those things going to fix the brain aspects (assuming those are even real…)

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It may be unavoidable at the point, but I guess I’d rather do my best to avoid it for as long as possible. For one I’d rather not roll the dice when literally everyone else is sick too. And moreover they are learning more about how to treat it every day, getting new meds, ramped up medication supply, and there’s work on a polyvalent (? I think that was the word) vaccine by the Army that’s in phase 2, I think. So I want to put it off as long possible. Not hiding in my house level, but put off stuff that can be reasonably put off - at least for the next month or so to see how this goes. I’m in the camp of being pretty concerned by the brain and vascular aspects of the disease, though I understand that it may present in the immediate term as a bad cold or flu.

But how are any of those things going to fix the brain aspects (assuming those are even real…)

True, they may not, but I guess I’m hopeful they will figure something out. Or maybe a new vaccine will be more protective against infection, or maybe all the people saying the virus will attenuate are right and so better to try to avoid. At a minimum trying to get infected as few times as possible seems prudent - within reason of living some semblance of a normal life. Maybe you pull back during surges times and loosen up during lulls. I don’t know. I just am not ready to give up on trying to avoid it quite yet.