Long Covid could trigger changes in the brain that are similar to Alzheimer’s, new study says
Some people suffering from long Covid may experience symptoms similar to those seen in individuals with Alzheimer’s disease, according to new research.
Recent findings from New York University Langone Health suggest that changes in the brain caused by Long Covid — symptoms of the illness that linger for more than three months, according to the CDC — may result in long-term fatigue, brain fog, dizziness, loss of smell or taste, depression, and other symptoms.
Some 20 million Americans have been diagnosed with long Covid, according to Yale Medicine.
“Our work suggests that long-term immune reactions caused in some cases after an initial COVID infection may come with swelling that damages a critical brain barrier in the choroid plexus,” senior study author Dr. Yulin Ge, a professor in the Department of Radiology at NYU Grossman School of Medicine, said in a statement.
“It is currently unknown whether these changes are reversible. We are actively analyzing their follow-up data to address this question,” Dr Ge said.
Senior study author Dr. Thomas Wisniewski of the NYU Grossman School of Medicine said in a statement that the team's next steps will be to monitor the patients to see if “the brain changes we identified can predict who will develop long-term cognitive issues.”
Source: The Independent, 11 February 2026