3 ms·

The amount we still don't know about the long term effects of being infected with COVID-19 is terrifying, and I honestly don't think it's talked about enough, b

The amount we still don't know about the long term effects of being infected with COVID-19 is terrifying, and I honestly don't think it's talked about enough, because we have learned more. I recall another submission on HN yesterday, talking about how the brain puts on "brakes" to cognitive capacity in response to some viruses/injuries (the article itself was about reversing that cognitive decline) [0]. I wonder if some of the neurological effects of COVID-19 are related to that or something different entirely. [0] https://www.ucsf.edu/news/2020/12/419201/drug-reverses-age-related-mental-decline-within-days https://www.ucsf.edu/news/2020/12/419201/drug-reverses-age-r...

JohnTHaller 6y ago
My (lack of) sense of smell agrees with you. 9 months post infection.
- andi999 6y ago
  Did you get a checkup? I had loss of sense of smell 4 years ago, some bacterial infection of paranasal sinus, treated with antibiotics. What I mean, maybe initially you lost it due to Corona, but some bacterial superinfection keeps it away.
- Jon_Lowtek 6y ago
  covid based loss of smell is suspected to be a result of an infection of the sustentacular and basal cells in the olfactory epithelium. It should return once the infection is gone. You should probably have that checked out.
  - JohnTHaller 6y ago
    Some of it returned, but a bit messed up. Same with my girlfriend. Same with several friends. It's pretty common. I only regained the ability to smell natural gas somewhat in the last month. It varies day to day whether I can smell it, though. Or smell at all.
standardUser 6y ago
"The amount we still don't know about the long term effects of being infected with COVID-19 is terrifying" The amount that we do know about the potential long term effects of various other illnesses, including some that most of us have already had in our lifetimes, is also terrifying. Let's not forget that many illnesses can, in some percentage of cases, cause serious and ongoing problems. COVID-19 doesn't appear to be bizarrely unique in this respect, it's just new and receiving a uniquely massive amount of attention (obviously for good reason).
- skulk 6y ago
  > COVID-19 doesn't appear to be bizarrely unique in this respect I don't agree. How many highly contagious, long-incubation, temporarily debilitating, and permanently damaging (cardiovascular, neurological, etc) diseases do we deal with regularly that we aren't already vaccinated against/haven't mostly eradicated? I haven't been alive long enough to remember tuberculosis, so this is quite bizarrely unique to me.
  - Izkata 6y ago
    > I haven't been alive long enough to remember tuberculosis, so this is quite bizarrely unique to me. You're alive right now, aren't you? From wikipedia (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tuberculosis https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tuberculosis): > In 2018, there were more than 10 million cases of active TB which resulted in 1.5 million deaths.[7] This makes it the number one cause of death from an infectious disease.[13] [..] About 80% of people in many Asian and African countries test positive while 5–10% of people in the United States population test positive by the tuberculin test.[14] Mentions of tuberculosis stick out for me because there was a scare in my middle school that resulted in lots of us getting tested for it (in 2003, in the US). Luckily it was only a scare, as far as I'm aware none of the tests came out positive (and I know mine didn't).
  - standardUser 6y ago
    Influenza can cause all kinds of serious and long term health problems. So can most STDs any given bacterial infection if they are left unobserved/untreated for long enough. Most pathogens have some chance of causing serious problems, they are just usually rare, just like with COVID-19.
vram22 6y ago
> The amount we still don't know about the long term effects of being infected with COVID-19 is terrifying, and I honestly don't think it's talked about enough, because we have learned more. Maybe a dumb question, or maybe I did not understand (the part before the "and"), but how can one be terrified of what one does not know about? I agree with the part after the "and".
- TameAntelope 6y ago
  https://markmanson.net/the-fear-of-the-unknown https://markmanson.net/the-fear-of-the-unknown Not everyone likes Mark, but if you’re curious, he explains the psychological situation better, at least, than I can.
  - vram22 6y ago
    Will check that out, thanks.
  - vram22 6y ago
    >Not everyone likes Mark Even after a brief look at his site, I can see why :) Didn't put me off, though. A guy who can read @dhh and @gnat can read Mark. Plus, I can see it is for effect.
moistly 6y ago
> the brain puts on "brakes" to cognitive capacity in response to some viruses/injuries A terrifying prospect. Misuse of lead (pipes, paint, gas) was a national tragedy with demonstrable ill effect on society and, IMO, still badly affecting the mental health of the older folk who grew up in that era. We can’t afford to take on another generation of mentally diminished, emotionally fragile citizens.

JohnTHaller 6y ago

My (lack of) sense of smell agrees with you. 9 months post infection.

andi999 6y ago
Did you get a checkup? I had loss of sense of smell 4 years ago, some bacterial infection of paranasal sinus, treated with antibiotics. What I mean, maybe initially you lost it due to Corona, but some bacterial superinfection keeps it away.
Jon_Lowtek 6y ago
covid based loss of smell is suspected to be a result of an infection of the sustentacular and basal cells in the olfactory epithelium. It should return once the infection is gone. You should probably have that checked out.
- JohnTHaller 6y ago
  Some of it returned, but a bit messed up. Same with my girlfriend. Same with several friends. It's pretty common. I only regained the ability to smell natural gas somewhat in the last month. It varies day to day whether I can smell it, though. Or smell at all.

standardUser 6y ago

"The amount we still don't know about the long term effects of being infected with COVID-19 is terrifying" The amount that we do know about the potential long term effects of various other illnesses, including some that most of us have already had in our lifetimes, is also terrifying. Let's not forget that many illnesses can, in some percentage of cases, cause serious and ongoing problems. COVID-19 doesn't appear to be bizarrely unique in this respect, it's just new and receiving a uniquely massive amount of attention (obviously for good reason).

skulk 6y ago
> COVID-19 doesn't appear to be bizarrely unique in this respect I don't agree. How many highly contagious, long-incubation, temporarily debilitating, and permanently damaging (cardiovascular, neurological, etc) diseases do we deal with regularly that we aren't already vaccinated against/haven't mostly eradicated? I haven't been alive long enough to remember tuberculosis, so this is quite bizarrely unique to me.
- Izkata 6y ago
  > I haven't been alive long enough to remember tuberculosis, so this is quite bizarrely unique to me. You're alive right now, aren't you? From wikipedia (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tuberculosis https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tuberculosis): > In 2018, there were more than 10 million cases of active TB which resulted in 1.5 million deaths.[7] This makes it the number one cause of death from an infectious disease.[13] [..] About 80% of people in many Asian and African countries test positive while 5–10% of people in the United States population test positive by the tuberculin test.[14] Mentions of tuberculosis stick out for me because there was a scare in my middle school that resulted in lots of us getting tested for it (in 2003, in the US). Luckily it was only a scare, as far as I'm aware none of the tests came out positive (and I know mine didn't).
- standardUser 6y ago
  Influenza can cause all kinds of serious and long term health problems. So can most STDs any given bacterial infection if they are left unobserved/untreated for long enough. Most pathogens have some chance of causing serious problems, they are just usually rare, just like with COVID-19.

vram22 6y ago

> The amount we still don't know about the long term effects of being infected with COVID-19 is terrifying, and I honestly don't think it's talked about enough, because we have learned more. Maybe a dumb question, or maybe I did not understand (the part before the "and"), but how can one be terrified of what one does not know about? I agree with the part after the "and".

TameAntelope 6y ago
https://markmanson.net/the-fear-of-the-unknown https://markmanson.net/the-fear-of-the-unknown Not everyone likes Mark, but if you’re curious, he explains the psychological situation better, at least, than I can.
- vram22 6y ago
  Will check that out, thanks.
- vram22 6y ago
  >Not everyone likes Mark Even after a brief look at his site, I can see why :) Didn't put me off, though. A guy who can read @dhh and @gnat can read Mark. Plus, I can see it is for effect.

moistly 6y ago

> the brain puts on "brakes" to cognitive capacity in response to some viruses/injuries A terrifying prospect. Misuse of lead (pipes, paint, gas) was a national tragedy with demonstrable ill effect on society and, IMO, still badly affecting the mental health of the older folk who grew up in that era. We can’t afford to take on another generation of mentally diminished, emotionally fragile citizens.