Post covid brain disorders
June 15, 2026
25 min
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158 of 364
June 15, 2026
Post covid brain disorders
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Dr John Campbell Episodes Around June 15, 2026
Episode 158 of 364 — walk the feed in the order it was published.
25:12This episodePost covid brain disorders
Summary
42%increased chance of developing a neuro problem after covid, equating to 7% of those infected.
Dr. Al-Aly
Overall, COVID-19 has contributed to more than 40 million new cases of neurological disorders worldwide
Long-term neurologic outcomes of COVID-19
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41591-022-02001-z
https://newatlas.com/health-wellbeing/mild-covid-risk-brain-neurological-problems/
https://medicine.wustl.edu/news/covid-19-infections-increase-risk-of-long-term-brain-problems/
Comprehensive evaluation of postacute neurologic sequelae at 1 year
National healthcare databases of the US Department of Veterans Affairs
Covid cohort = 154,068
(nonhospitalized, hospitalized and admitted to intensive care)
Contemporary controls = 5,638,795
Historical controls = 5,859,621 (2017 data)
Average age of 61
Estimate risks and burdens of incident neurologic disorders at 12 months following acute SARS-CoV-2 infection
Longitudinal observational study design
March 2020 through January 2021
(predates delta, omicron and other COVID variants)
Results
In the postacute phase of COVID-19, there was increased risk of an array of incident neurologic sequelae
Ischemic and hemorrhagic stroke
TIA
Cognition and memory disorders
Peripheral nervous system disorders
Episodic disorders (e.g. migraine, seizures)
Extrapyramidal and movement disorders
Mental health disorders, (anxiety depression psychosis)
Musculoskeletal disorders
Sensory disorders
Guillain–Barré syndrome
Encephalitis or encephalopathy
Headaches
Hazard ratio of any neurologic sequela
1.42 (1.38 to 1.47)
Burden
70.69 (63.54 to 78.01) per 1,000 persons at 12 months
Or, 7.069%
The risks and burdens were elevated even in people who did not require hospitalization during acute COVID-19
Risks and burdens increased according to the severity of the acute infection,
from nonhospitalized to hospitalized to intensive care
Dizzynes
Taken together, our results provide evidence of increased risk of long-term neurologic disorders in people who had COVID-19.
Incident neurologic outcomes in COVID-19 versus contemporary control
Cerebrovascular disorders (at 12 months)
Ischemic stroke HR 1.50, burden 3.40 per 1,000