嚴重新冠感染可使大腦老化20年

In a study comparing 46 severe COVID-19 patients with 460 matched controls, British researchers found the mental impact of severe COVID-19 six months later can be the equivalent to aging 20 years – going from 50 to 70 years old – or losing 10 IQ points.

在一項將46名新冠肺炎重癥患者與460人的匹配對照組進行比較的研究中，英國研究人員發(fā)現(xiàn)，這些患者在感染新冠病毒6個月后受到的認知影響相當于衰老20年（從50歲到70歲），或智商降低10個點。

Previous research has shown during severe COVID, the brain decreases glucose consumption in the frontoparietal network, which is involved in attention, problem solving and working memory.
此前的研究表明，新冠肺炎癥狀嚴重時，大腦會減少額頂葉的葡萄糖消耗，額頂葉負責注意力、問題解決和工作記憶等功能。

It's also known the virus can directly affect the brain.
眾所周知，新冠病毒會直接影響大腦。

But the research suggests the likely culprit isn't direct infection, but a combination of factors: including reduced oxygen or blood supply to the brain; clotting of vessels; and microscopic bleeds.
但研究人員認為，罪魁禍首可能不是感染病毒本身，而是多種因素的綜合作用：包括大腦供氧或血液供應(yīng)減少、靜脈血栓以及輕微出血。

The full report has been published in eClinical Medicine.
這項研究發(fā)表在《臨床醫(yī)學》上。