Northwestern Medicine researchers found a heavier neurological symptom burden among women attending a specialist long COVID clinic.
Women may experience a heavier neurological burden from long COVID than men, according to a study involving 2,329 adults evaluated at Northwestern Medicine’s Neuro COVID-19 Clinic.
Female patients reported more neurological symptoms, greater fatigue-related disruption to daily life and poorer performance on an objective test of attention. Approximately two-thirds of the patients included in the study were women.
The findings were published in Annals of Clinical and Translational Neurology and add to earlier evidence showing that women are more likely than men to develop long COVID.
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The Neurological Burden Behind Long COVID
Long COVID is a chronic condition that develops after SARS-CoV-2 infection and remains present for at least three months. Its symptoms may persist, disappear and return, or change over time, sometimes interfering significantly with work, education and everyday activities.
Neurological long COVID can involve the brain, nerves and autonomic nervous system. Commonly reported symptoms include brain fog, headaches, dizziness, sleep problems, pins-and-needles sensations and changes in smell or taste. Fatigue and post-exertional worsening are also frequently reported.
There is currently no single approved laboratory test that can confirm whether a person’s symptoms are caused by long COVID. Diagnosis is generally based on medical history, prior infection or exposure, physical examination and the exclusion of other possible causes.
Women Carried a Heavier Neurological Burden
Compared with male patients, women in the study more frequently reported:
- Brain fog
- Headaches
- Dizziness
- Numbness and tingling
- Muscle and other forms of pain
- Altered smell and taste
- Blurred vision
- Tinnitus
No neurological symptom assessed in the study was more frequent among men. Women also reported more non-neurological problems, including fatigue, breathlessness, chest pain, gastrointestinal symptoms and dysautonomia, which affects automatic functions such as heart rate and blood pressure.
Women experienced a greater decline in fatigue-related quality of life and performed less well on an objective attention task. However, this does not mean that every woman with long COVID will experience more serious symptoms than every man. The findings describe differences observed across the study groups.
Lead researcher Dr. Igor Koralnik said:
“We were surprised to see such a significant difference between female and male patients.”
He said the differences appeared in neurological symptom frequency, self-reported fatigue and attention performance.
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Immune Differences May Hold Part of the Answer
The study did not establish why women experienced a greater symptom burden. Researchers suggested that immune dysregulation and autoimmune activity may contribute because women are more susceptible to several autoimmune diseases. However, this remains a hypothesis that requires further biological investigation.(1✔ ✔Trusted Source
Neurologic Manifestations of Long COVID Affect Adult Females More Severely Than Males
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Earlier research from the National Institutes of Health’s RECOVER Initiative also found that women had a higher overall risk of developing long COVID. The association was particularly notable among nonmenopausal women aged 40 to 54, suggesting that immune, hormonal and reproductive factors warrant closer study.
Researchers now aim to identify biological markers that could measure disease activity and clarify the mechanisms behind neurological symptoms.
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Sex-Specific Care Could Improve Long COVID Support
Recognising differences between women and men may help clinicians identify neurological long COVID earlier and provide more individualised cognitive assessment, symptom management and rehabilitation.(1✔ ✔Trusted Source
Neurologic Manifestations of Long COVID Affect Adult Females More Severely Than Males
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Women reporting persistent brain fog, headaches, dizziness, numbness, altered senses or severe fatigue after COVID-19 should receive a comprehensive evaluation. These symptoms can have many causes, so they should not automatically be attributed to long COVID without medical assessment.
Because the participants were patients attending one specialised neurological long COVID clinic, the results may not represent everyone living with the condition. The study also identifies associations rather than proving that biological sex directly causes greater symptom severity.
Further research across larger and more diverse populations is needed to confirm the findings and determine why women appear to be disproportionately affected.
Reference:
- Neurologic Manifestations of Long COVID Affect Adult Females More Severely Than Males- (https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/acn3.70468)
Source-Medindia