For people living with Long COVID, getting concrete answers can feel maddening. While outright dismissal of Long COVID has become less common, researchers are still debating what causes its many symptoms.
Previously, some researchers suggested that brain inflammation could be driving Long COVID symptoms such as brain fog and fatigue. However, new brain scans point to a different possibility. Rather than inflammation alone, researchers now believe that changes in mood and emotion centers of the brain could play a role.
What Are the Findings?
The new study included 14 participants with Long COVID. Researchers compared them with 11 healthy participants and 13 people with multiple sclerosis, a condition known to cause brain inflammation.
To investigate further, researchers used PET and MRI scans. PET scans looked for signs of brain inflammation, while MRI scans examined possible changes to brain structure, including white matter tissue. Researchers also tested blood samples for evidence of brain cell damage.
When comparing the groups, researchers found that Long COVID patients had much lower brain inflammation than people with MS. The difference was especially clear in white matter regions of the brain. In fact, Long COVID patients looked very similar to healthy participants in terms of inflammation and brain damage.
These results were surprising because earlier studies found evidence of brain inflammation after severe COVID-19 cases. The researchers suggest that inflammation may be more common earlier after infection and may decrease over time.
While the inflammation findings were limited, researchers found a stronger connection between Long COVID, mood, and emotion. Participants who reported more anxiety and depression symptoms showed unusual brain activity in the hippocampus and amygdala. These areas are involved in memory, emotion, and stress response.
What’s Next?
According to the research team, these changes could help explain some Long COVID symptoms. However, the findings do not mean Long COVID is “just anxiety” or purely emotional. Instead, they suggest that the brain’s stress and emotion systems may be involved in the condition.
Long COVID has created a major global health burden since the pandemic began. Millions of people continue to struggle with symptoms, and there is still no simple treatment. This study adds more evidence that inflammation alone may not explain Long COVID.
Instead of focusing only on brain inflammation, clinicians may need to consider the brain’s emotional and stress-regulation systems. Supportive strategies that help regulate stress and negative emotions could potentially improve outcomes for some patients.
Still, the picture remains incomplete. The study was small, and more research is needed to confirm these findings. Hopefully, continued investigation will offer clearer answers about how to diagnose and treat Long COVID.
Conclusion
Recent brain scans suggest that Long COVID symptoms may not result from inflammation, as previously believed. Instead, they may be linked to changes in mood and emotion centers within the brain. While more research is needed, these findings offer new clues about how the condition develops.
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Logan Hamilton is a health and wellness freelance writer for hire. He’s passionate about crafting crystal-clear, captivating, and credible content that elevates brands and establishes trust. When not writing, Logan can be found hiking, sticking his nose in bizarre books, or playing drums in a local rock band. Find him at loganjameshamilton.com.
