May 2, 2024

Does Nerve Damage Contribute to “Long-COVID” Symptoms? Is It Treatable?

Typical symptoms of neuropathy nerve damage consist of weak point, sensory modifications, and pain in the feet and hands as well as internal grievances including fatigue.
” Research from our team and others is clarifying what the different types of post-COVID neuropathy are, and how finest to diagnose and treat them,” says Oaklander. “Most long-COVID neuropathies explained so far appear to show immune actions to the infection that went off course.

Almost all post-COVID neuropathy appears due to infection-triggered immune dysfunction that is possibly treatable.
Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, some individuals infected with the SARS-CoV-2 virus continue to experience “long-COVID” signs persisting at least three months after recovery from COVID, even after moderate cases. These consist of difficulty getting through regular activities, faintness and fast heart rate, shortness of breath, cognitive difficulties, persistent pain, sensory irregularities, and muscle weakness. A new research study led by researchers at Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) and the National Institutes of Health suggests that some clients with long-COVID have lasting nerve damage that appears triggered by infection-triggered immune dysfunction.

The study, newly released in Neurology: Neuroimmunology & & Neuroinflammation, consisted of 17 patients with COVID (16 with moderate cases) who fulfilled WHO requirements for long-COVID. They had been assessed and dealt with in 10 U.S. states/territories. Examinations revealed proof of peripheral neuropathy in 59%. Typical signs of neuropathy nerve damage consist of weak point, sensory changes, and discomfort in the hands and feet as well as internal problems consisting of tiredness.
” This is among the early papers checking out causes of long-COVID, which will gradually increase in value as acute COVID wanes,” says lead author Anne Louise Oaklander, MD, PhD, an investigator in the Department of Neurology at MGH. “Our findings recommend that some long-COVID patients had damage to their peripheral nerve fibers, which damage to the small-fiber kind of nerve cell might be popular.”
Oaklander notes that if clients have long-COVID signs that arent otherwise described and arent improving, they may take advantage of talking about neuropathy with their medical professional or seeing a neurologist or neuromuscular professional.
” Research from our team and others is clarifying what the different kinds of post-COVID neuropathy are, and how best to identify and treat them,” says Oaklander. “Most long-COVID neuropathies described so far appear to reflect immune reactions to the infection that went off course. And some clients appear to enhance from basic treatments for other immune-related neuropathies.” She warned that there hasnt sufficed time to carry out clinical trials to carefully test specific treatments, however.
Recommendation: “Peripheral Neuropathy Evaluations of Patients With Prolonged Long COVID” by Anne Louise Oaklander, Alexander J. Mills, Mary Kelley, Lisa S. Toran, Bryan Smith, Marinos C. Dalakas and Avindra Nath, 1 March 2022, Neurology Neuroimmunology & & Neuroinflammation.DOI: 10.1212/ NXI.0000000000001146.
Co-authors consist of Alexander J. Mills, BS, Mary Kelley, DO, Lisa S. Toran MD, Bryan Smith, MD, Marinos C. Dalakas, MD, and Avindra Nath, MD
. The research study was supported in part by the National Institutes of Health and Thomas Jefferson University.