🕷️ Crawler Inspector

URL Lookup

Direct Parameter Lookup

Raw Queries and Responses

1. Shard Calculation

Query:

Response:

Calculated Shard: 31 (from laksa045)

2. Crawled Status Check

Query:

curl -X POST \
  'http://laksa031.int.ahrefs:8124/' \
  -H 'Content-Type: text/plain' \
  -H 'X-ClickHouse-Database: crawler3' \
  -H 'Authorization: Basic YXBpOg==' \
  -d 'SELECT getAhrefsURLFromUnparsed(src_unparsed) AS found_url, ifNull(toUnixTimestamp(download_stamp), 0) AS crawl_time, ifNull(toUnixTimestamp(props_url_first_seen), 0) AS first_indexed_time, download_http_code AS http_code, src_unparsed AS src_unparsed, src_root_hash AS src_root_hash, history_drop_reason AS history_drop_reason, meta_title AS meta_title, meta_descriptions AS meta_descriptions, attrs_boilerpipe_text AS attrs_boilerpipe_text, attrs_markdown AS attrs_markdown, attrs_readable_markdown AS attrs_readable_markdown, meta_canonical AS meta_canonical, ml_categories_json AS ml_categories_json, ml_types_json AS ml_types_json, ml_intent_types_json AS ml_intent_types_json, meta_language AS meta_language, attrs_author AS attrs_author, ifNull(toUnixTimestamp(attrs_publish_time), 0) AS attrs_publish_time, ifNull(toUnixTimestamp(attrs_original_publish_time), 0) AS attrs_original_publish_time, ifNull(attrs_is_republished, 0) AS attrs_is_republished, ifNull(attrs_nr_words, 0) AS attrs_nr_words, ifNull(attrs_boilerpipe_nr_words, 0) AS attrs_boilerpipe_nr_words, ifNull(body_ext_links_number, 0) AS body_ext_links_number, ifNull(body_int_links_number, 0) AS body_int_links_number, ifNull(meta_nofollow, 0) AS meta_nofollow, ifNull(meta_noarchive, 0) AS meta_noarchive, ifNull(props_was_rendered, 0) AS props_was_rendered, ifNull(src_redirect, \'\') AS src_redirect, ifNull(download_time_msec, 0) AS download_time_msec, ifNull(download_ttfb_msec, 0) AS download_ttfb_msec, ifNull(download_size, 0) AS download_size FROM crawler3.page_info_local FINAL PREWHERE (src_root_hash, src_unparsed) IN ((getAhrefsRootHashFromUnparsed(getAhrefsUnparsedNoserviceFromURL(\'https://www.eatg.org/hiv-news/anxiety-your-brain-and-long-covid-what-the-research-says/\')), getAhrefsUnparsedNoserviceFromURL(\'https://www.eatg.org/hiv-news/anxiety-your-brain-and-long-covid-what-the-research-says/\'))) FORMAT JSONEachRow'

Response:

{"found_url":"https:\/\/www.eatg.org\/hiv-news\/anxiety-your-brain-and-long-covid-what-the-research-says\/","crawl_time":1776362507,"first_indexed_time":1686009588,"http_code":200,"src_unparsed":"org,eatg!www,\/hiv-news\/anxiety-your-brain-and-long-covid-what-the-research-says\/ s443","src_root_hash":"16510872311708999431","history_drop_reason":null,"meta_title":"Anxiety, your brain, and long COVID: What the research says | EATG","meta_descriptions":["Anxiety, depression, and COVID-19 can be a bad combination for your brain -- and your long-term health."],"attrs_boilerpipe_text":"Anxiety, depression, and COVID-19 can be a bad combination for your brain — and your long-term health.\nHaving anxiety and depression \nbefore\n a COVID infection increases the risk of developing long COVID, \nresearchers have found.\nThose with long COVID who develop anxiety and depression \nafter \nan infection may have \nbrain shrinkage\n in areas that regulate memory, emotion, and other functions as well as disruption of brain connectivity.\nWhile many questions remain about these intertwined relationships, the associations aren’t a complete surprise. Experts already know that depression and anxiety are associated with inflammation and immune dysfunction, perhaps helping to explain the link between these mental health conditions, the risk of long COVID, and the changes in the brain.\nBrain changes accompanying a COVID infection have concerned researchers since earlier in the pandemic, when U.K. Biobank researchers \nfound\n brain atrophy, loss of grey matter, and decline in cognition in those infected with COVID compared with those not infected.\nCommon Conditions\nThe ramifications of the research linking anxiety, depression and long COVID are far-reaching. According to the \nCDC,\n 12.5% of U.S. adults have regular feelings of anxiety (as well as nervousness and worry), and the latest \nGallup Poll\nfound that nearly 18% of adults currently have or are being treated for depression.\nAs of May 8, 10% of U.S. infected adults have long COVID, according to the \nCDC,\n and among U.S. adults ever infected, 27% have reported long COVID. Long COVID has been \ndefined\n by the CDC as symptoms such as fatigue, brain fog, and cough that persist longer than 4 weeks and by the \nWorld Health Organization\n as symptoms persisting for 3 months or more.\nHere’s a roundup of what the research shows about mental health and long COVID risk — along with other research finding that paying attention to health habits may reduce that risk.\nPre-Existing Depression, Anxiety, and Long COVID Risk\nA history of mental health issues — including depression, anxiety, worry, perceived stress, and loneliness — raises the risk of long COVID if infection occurs, Harvard researchers have found.\nThe researchers evaluated data from three large, ongoing studies including nearly 55,000 participants to determine the effects of high levels of psychological distress before a COVID infection.\n“Our study was purely survey based,” said Siwen Wang, MD, the study’s lead author and a research fellow at Harvard’s T.H. Chan School of Public Health at Harvard University.\nAt the start of the survey in April 2020, none of the participants reported a current or previous COVID infection. They answered surveys about psychological distress at the start of the study, at 6 monthly time points, then quarterly until November 2021.\nOver the follow up, 3,193 people reported a positive COVID test and 43% of those, or 1,403, developed long COVID. That number may seem high, but 38% of the 55,000 were active health care workers. On the final questionnaire, they reported whether their symptoms persisted for 4 weeks or longer and thus had long COVID by the standard CDC definition.\nWang’s team then looked at the infected participants’ psychological status. Anxiety raised the risk of long COVID by 42%, depression by 32%, worry about COVID by 37%, perceived stress, 46%, and loneliness, 32%.\nCOVID patients with a history of depression or anxiety are also more likely than others to report trouble with cognition in the weeks after a COVID infection and to develop brain fog and long COVID, \nUCLA researchers found.\n They evaluated 766 people with a confirmed COVID infection; 36% said their thinking was affected within 4 weeks of the infection. Those with anxiety and depression were more likely to report those difficulties.\nLong COVID, Then Anxiety, Depression, Brain Changes\nEven mild cases of COVID infection can lead to long COVID and brain changes in those who suffer anxiety or depression after the infection, according to Clarissa Yasuda, MD, PhD, assistant professor of neurology at the University of Campinas in Sao Paulo, Brazil. She has researched long COVID’s effects on the brain, even as she is coping with being a long COVID patient.\nIn one of her studies, presented at the 2023 American Academy of Neurology meeting in April, she found brain changes in people with anxiety, depression, and COVID but not in those infected who did not have either mental health issue. She evaluated 254 people, median age 41, after about 82 days from their positive PCR test for COVID.  Everyone completed a standard questionnaire for depression (the Beck Depression Inventory) and another for anxiety (the Beck Anxiety Inventory). She further divided them into two groups — the 102 with symptoms and the 152 who had no symptoms of either depression or anxiety.\nBrain scans showed those with COVID who also had anxiety and depression had shrinkage in the limbic area of the brain (which helps process emotion and memory), while those infected who didn’t have anxiety or depression did not. The researchers then scanned the brains of 148 healthy people without COVID and found no shrinkage.\nThe atrophy, Yasuda said, “is not something you can see with your eyes. It was only detected with computer analysis. Visualization on an MRI is normal.”\nThe number of people in this study with mental health issues was surprisingly high, Yasuda said. “It was intriguing for us that we noticed many individuals have both symptoms, anxiety and depression. We were not expecting it at that proportion.”\nThe researchers found a pattern of change not only in brain structure but in brain communication. They found those changes by using specialized software to analyze brain networks in some of the participants. Those with anxiety and depression had widespread functional changes in each of 12 networks tested. The participants without mental health symptoms showed changes in just 5 networks. These changes are enough to lead to problems with thinking skills and memory, Yasuda said.\nExplaining the Links\nSeveral ideas have been proposed to explain the link between psychological distress and long COVID risk, Wang said. “The first and most mainstream mechanism for long COVID is chronic inflammation and immune dysregulation,” she said. “Several mental health conditions, such as anxiety and depression, are associated with inflammation and dysfunction and that might be the link between depression, anxiety, and long COVID.”\nAnother less mainstream hypothesis, she said, is that “those with long COVID have more autoantibodies and they are more likely to have blood clotting issues. These have also been found in people with anxiety, depression, or other psychological distress.”\nOther researchers are looking more broadly at how COVID infections affect the brain. When German researchers evaluated the brain and other body parts of 20 patients who died from non-COVID causes but had documented COVID infections, they found that 12 had \naccumulations\n of the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein in the brain tissue as well as the skull and meninges, the membranes that line the skull and spinal cord. Healthy controls did not.\nThe findings suggest the persistence of the spike protein may contribute to the long-term neurological symptoms of long COVID and may also lead to understanding of the molecular mechanisms as well as therapies for long COVID, the researchers said in their preprint report, which has not yet been peer-reviewed.\nIn another recent \nstudy,\nresearchers from Hamburg, Germany, performed neuroimaging and neuropsychological assessments of 223 people who were not vaccinated and recovered from mild to moderate COVID infections, comparing them to 223 matched healthy controls who had the same testing. In those infected, they found alterations in the cerebral white matter but no worse cognitive function in the first year after recovering. They conclude that the infection triggers a prolonged neuroinflammatory response.\nCan the brain changes reverse? “We don’t have an answer right now, but we are working on that,” Yasuda said. For now, she speculates about the return of brain volume: “I think for most it will. But I think we need to treat the symptoms. We can’t disregard the symptoms of long COVID. People are suffering a lot, and this suffering is causing some brain damage.”\nLifestyle Habits and Risk of Long COVID\nMeanwhile, \nhealthy lifestyle habits\n in those infected can reduce the risk of long COVID, research by Wang and her colleagues found. They followed nearly 2,000 women with a positive COVID test over 19 months. Of these, 44%, or 871, developed long COVID. Compared with women who followed none of the healthy lifestyle habits evaluated, those with five to six of the habits had a 49% lower risk of long COVID.\nThe habits included: a healthy BMI (18.5 to 24.9), never smoking, at least 150 minutes weekly of moderate to vigorous physical activity, moderate alcohol intake (5-15 grams a day), high diet quality, and good sleep (7-9 hours nightly).\nLong-Term Solutions \nYasuda hopes that mental health care — of those infected and those not — will be taken more seriously. In her \ncommentary\n on her own long COVID experience, she wrote, in part: “I fear for the numerous survivors of COVID-19 who do not have access to medical attention for their post-COVID symptoms. … The mental health system needs to become prepared to receive survivors with different neuropsychiatric symptoms, including anxiety and depression.”\nBy Kathleen Doheny\nSources\nClarissa Yasuda, MD, PhD, assistant professor of neurology at the University of Campinas, Sao Paulo, Brazil.\nSiwen Wang, MD, research fellow, T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Harvard University, Boston.\nJAMA Psychiatry: \nAssociations of Depression, Anxiety, Worry, Perceived Stress, and Loneliness Prior to Infection With Risk of Post-COVID-19 Conditions.”\nAmerican Academy of Neurology 2023 Annual Meeting, April 22-27: “Anxiety and Depression Are Associated with Limbic Atrophy and Severe Disruption Of Brain Functional Connectivity After Mild COVID-19 Infection.”\nCDC: “Long COVID or Post-COVID Conditions,” “Fast Stats: Mental Health.”\nbioRxiv: \n“SARS-CoV-2 Spike Protein Accumulation in the Skull-Meninges-Brain Axis: Potential Implications for Long-Term Neurological Complications in post-COVID-19.”\nPNAS: \n“Brain imaging and neuropsychological assessment of individuals recovered from a mild to moderate SARS-CoV-2 infection.”\nJAMA Internal Medicine: \n“Adherence to Healthy Lifestyle Prior to Infection and Risk of Post-COVID-19 Condition.”\nJAMA Network Open: \n“Perceived Cognitive Deficits in Patients With Symptomatic SARS-CoV-2 and Their Association with Post-COVID-19 Condition.”\nGallup: “U.S. Depression Rates Reach New Highs.”\nArquivos de Neuro-Psiquiatria: \n“My journey after a mild infection with COVID-19: I want my old brain back.”","attrs_markdown":"- [It Starts and Ends with Us: Community at the Centre of Clinical Studies](https:\/\/www.eatg.org\/it-starts-and-ends-with-us\/)\n\n[![](https:\/\/www.eatg.org\/wp-content\/themes\/eatg\/library\/img\/\/logo-eatg.png)](https:\/\/www.eatg.org\/ \"EATG\")\n\n- [About us](https:\/\/www.eatg.org\/about-us\/)\n  - [Who we are](https:\/\/www.eatg.org\/who-we-are\/)\n  - [Our people](https:\/\/www.eatg.org\/about-us\/#our-people)\n  - [Our strategy](https:\/\/www.eatg.org\/our-strategy\/)\n  - [How we work](https:\/\/www.eatg.org\/how-we-work\/)\n  - [Compliance and Bylaws](https:\/\/www.eatg.org\/about-us\/#compliance-and-bylaws)\n  - [Partners](https:\/\/www.eatg.org\/partners\/)\n  - [Donors](https:\/\/www.eatg.org\/donors\/)\n- [What we do](https:\/\/www.eatg.org\/what-we-do\/)\n  - [Programmes](https:\/\/www.eatg.org\/programmes\/)\n  - [Projects](https:\/\/www.eatg.org\/projects\/)\n  - [Initiatives](https:\/\/www.eatg.org\/initiatives\/)\n  - [Events](https:\/\/www.eatg.org\/events\/)\n  - [Campaigns](https:\/\/www.eatg.org\/campaigns\/)\n- [Resources](https:\/\/www.eatg.org\/resources\/)\n  - [Publications](https:\/\/www.eatg.org\/publications\/)\n  - [Position papers](https:\/\/www.eatg.org\/position-papers\/)\n  - [Press releases and Statements](https:\/\/www.eatg.org\/press-releases-and-statements\/)\n  - [Endorsements and Sign-Ons](https:\/\/www.eatg.org\/endorsements-and-sign-ons\/)\n  - [Infographics and Visuals](https:\/\/www.eatg.org\/infographics-and-visuals\/)\n  - [Audio and Video](https:\/\/www.eatg.org\/audio-and-video\/)\n  - [Thematic archives](https:\/\/www.eatg.org\/resources\/#tunnel-links)\n    - [Women](https:\/\/www.eatg.org\/women\/)\n    - [Ageing](https:\/\/www.eatg.org\/ageing\/)\n    - [COVID-19](https:\/\/www.eatg.org\/covid-19\/)\n    - [DoxyPEP](https:\/\/www.eatg.org\/publications\/doxypep\/)\n    - [e-MPOWER Youth Activist Toolbox](https:\/\/www.eatg.org\/e-mpower-youth-activist-toolbox\/)\n    - [PROMise Community Activist Toolbox](https:\/\/www.eatg.org\/promise-community-activist-toolbox\/)\n    - [RBDCOV Community Engagement Toolbox](https:\/\/www.eatg.org\/rbdcov-community-engagement-toolbox\/)\n- [Latest](https:\/\/www.eatg.org\/latest\/)\n  - [News](https:\/\/www.eatg.org\/news\/)\n  - [Blogs](https:\/\/www.eatg.org\/blogs\/)\n  - [Calls and Vacancies](https:\/\/www.eatg.org\/calls\/)\n  - [Calendar](https:\/\/www.eatg.org\/calendar\/)\n  - [HIV and Co-infections News](https:\/\/www.eatg.org\/hiv-co-infections-news\/)\n  - [Programme Newsletters](https:\/\/www.eatg.org\/programme-newsletters\/)\n- [Search](https:\/\/www.eatg.org\/hiv-news\/anxiety-your-brain-and-long-covid-what-the-research-says\/)\n\nNavigation\n\n- [MyEATG](https:\/\/my.eatg.org\/)\n- [Contact](https:\/\/www.eatg.org\/contact\/)\n\n- [Donate](https:\/\/www.eatg.org\/donate\/)\n- [Get involved](https:\/\/www.eatg.org\/hiv-news\/anxiety-your-brain-and-long-covid-what-the-research-says\/#ctas-left)\n- [Subscribe](https:\/\/www.eatg.org\/hiv-news\/anxiety-your-brain-and-long-covid-what-the-research-says\/#ctas-right)\n\n- [About us](https:\/\/www.eatg.org\/about-us\/)\n  - [Who we are](https:\/\/www.eatg.org\/who-we-are\/)\n  - [Our people](https:\/\/www.eatg.org\/about-us\/#our-people)\n  - [Our strategy](https:\/\/www.eatg.org\/our-strategy\/)\n  - [How we work](https:\/\/www.eatg.org\/how-we-work\/)\n  - [Compliance and Bylaws](https:\/\/www.eatg.org\/about-us\/#compliance-and-bylaws)\n  - [Partners](https:\/\/www.eatg.org\/partners\/)\n  - [Donors](https:\/\/www.eatg.org\/donors\/)\n- [What we do](https:\/\/www.eatg.org\/what-we-do\/)\n  - [Programmes](https:\/\/www.eatg.org\/programmes\/)\n  - [Projects](https:\/\/www.eatg.org\/projects\/)\n  - [Initiatives](https:\/\/www.eatg.org\/initiatives\/)\n  - [Events](https:\/\/www.eatg.org\/events\/)\n  - [Campaigns](https:\/\/www.eatg.org\/campaigns\/)\n- [Resources](https:\/\/www.eatg.org\/resources\/)\n  - [Publications](https:\/\/www.eatg.org\/publications\/)\n  - [Position papers](https:\/\/www.eatg.org\/position-papers\/)\n  - [Press releases and Statements](https:\/\/www.eatg.org\/press-releases-and-statements\/)\n  - [Endorsements and Sign-Ons](https:\/\/www.eatg.org\/endorsements-and-sign-ons\/)\n  - [Infographics and Visuals](https:\/\/www.eatg.org\/infographics-and-visuals\/)\n  - [Audio and Video](https:\/\/www.eatg.org\/audio-and-video\/)\n  - [Thematic archives](https:\/\/www.eatg.org\/resources\/#tunnel-links)\n    - [Women](https:\/\/www.eatg.org\/women\/)\n    - [Ageing](https:\/\/www.eatg.org\/ageing\/)\n    - [COVID-19](https:\/\/www.eatg.org\/covid-19\/)\n    - [DoxyPEP](https:\/\/www.eatg.org\/publications\/doxypep\/)\n    - [e-MPOWER Youth Activist Toolbox](https:\/\/www.eatg.org\/e-mpower-youth-activist-toolbox\/)\n    - [PROMise Community Activist Toolbox](https:\/\/www.eatg.org\/promise-community-activist-toolbox\/)\n    - [RBDCOV Community Engagement Toolbox](https:\/\/www.eatg.org\/rbdcov-community-engagement-toolbox\/)\n- [Latest](https:\/\/www.eatg.org\/latest\/)\n  - [News](https:\/\/www.eatg.org\/news\/)\n  - [Blogs](https:\/\/www.eatg.org\/blogs\/)\n  - [Calls and Vacancies](https:\/\/www.eatg.org\/calls\/)\n  - [Calendar](https:\/\/www.eatg.org\/calendar\/)\n  - [HIV and Co-infections News](https:\/\/www.eatg.org\/hiv-co-infections-news\/)\n  - [Programme Newsletters](https:\/\/www.eatg.org\/programme-newsletters\/)\n- [Search](https:\/\/www.eatg.org\/hiv-news\/anxiety-your-brain-and-long-covid-what-the-research-says\/)\n\n- [MyEATG](https:\/\/my.eatg.org\/)\n- [Contact](https:\/\/www.eatg.org\/contact\/)\n\n# Anxiety, your brain, and long COVID: What the research says\n[Back to the \"HIV and Co-Infections News\" list](https:\/\/www.eatg.org\/hiv-co-infections-news\/ \"Go back to the \\\"HIV and Co-Infections News\\\" list\")\n\n![](https:\/\/www.eatg.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/wbst-hiv-and-co-infections-eatg-2-sq-900x500.png) Shutterstock\n\n- COVID-19\n\nJune 5, 2023\n\nTags:\n\n- [Long COVID](https:\/\/www.eatg.org\/hiv-co-infections-news\/?hivnews_tag=long-covid)\n\nShare:\n\nAnxiety, depression, and COVID-19 can be a bad combination for your brain — and your long-term health.\n\nHaving anxiety and depression *before* a COVID infection increases the risk of developing long COVID, [researchers have found.](https:\/\/jamanetwork.com\/journals\/jamapsychiatry\/fullarticle\/2796097)\n\nThose with long COVID who develop anxiety and depression *after* an infection may have [brain shrinkage](https:\/\/aanfiles.blob.core.windows.net\/aanfiles\/d6ad7486-84cc-4d08-9bf3-e3b7c9825d8f\/EMBARGOED%202023%20AAN%20AM%20Abstract%20%231998%20-%20Anxiety%20and%20Depression%20Are%20Associated%20with%20Limbic%20Atrophy%20and%20Severe%20Disruption%20Of%20Brain%20Functional%20Connectivity....pdf) in areas that regulate memory, emotion, and other functions as well as disruption of brain connectivity.\n\nWhile many questions remain about these intertwined relationships, the associations aren’t a complete surprise. Experts already know that depression and anxiety are associated with inflammation and immune dysfunction, perhaps helping to explain the link between these mental health conditions, the risk of long COVID, and the changes in the brain.\n\nBrain changes accompanying a COVID infection have concerned researchers since earlier in the pandemic, when U.K. Biobank researchers [found](https:\/\/www.nature.com\/articles\/s41586-022-04569-5) brain atrophy, loss of grey matter, and decline in cognition in those infected with COVID compared with those not infected.\n\n#### **Common Conditions**\nThe ramifications of the research linking anxiety, depression and long COVID are far-reaching. According to the [CDC,](https:\/\/www.cdc.gov\/nchs\/fastats\/mental-health.htm) 12.5% of U.S. adults have regular feelings of anxiety (as well as nervousness and worry), and the latest [Gallup Poll](https:\/\/news.gallup.com\/poll\/505745\/depression-rates-reach-new-highs.aspx) found that nearly 18% of adults currently have or are being treated for depression.\n\nAs of May 8, 10% of U.S. infected adults have long COVID, according to the [CDC,](https:\/\/www.cdc.gov\/nchs\/covid19\/pulse\/long-covid.htm) and among U.S. adults ever infected, 27% have reported long COVID. Long COVID has been [defined](https:\/\/www.cdc.gov\/coronavirus\/2019-ncov\/long-term-effects\/index.html) by the CDC as symptoms such as fatigue, brain fog, and cough that persist longer than 4 weeks and by the [World Health Organization](https:\/\/www.who.int\/europe\/news-room\/fact-sheets\/item\/post-covid-19-condition) as symptoms persisting for 3 months or more.\n\nHere’s a roundup of what the research shows about mental health and long COVID risk — along with other research finding that paying attention to health habits may reduce that risk.\n\n#### **Pre-Existing Depression, Anxiety, and Long COVID Risk**\nA history of mental health issues — including depression, anxiety, worry, perceived stress, and loneliness — raises the risk of long COVID if infection occurs, Harvard researchers have found.\n\nThe researchers evaluated data from three large, ongoing studies including nearly 55,000 participants to determine the effects of high levels of psychological distress before a COVID infection.\n\n“Our study was purely survey based,” said Siwen Wang, MD, the study’s lead author and a research fellow at Harvard’s T.H. Chan School of Public Health at Harvard University.\n\nAt the start of the survey in April 2020, none of the participants reported a current or previous COVID infection. They answered surveys about psychological distress at the start of the study, at 6 monthly time points, then quarterly until November 2021.\n\nOver the follow up, 3,193 people reported a positive COVID test and 43% of those, or 1,403, developed long COVID. That number may seem high, but 38% of the 55,000 were active health care workers. On the final questionnaire, they reported whether their symptoms persisted for 4 weeks or longer and thus had long COVID by the standard CDC definition.\n\nWang’s team then looked at the infected participants’ psychological status. Anxiety raised the risk of long COVID by 42%, depression by 32%, worry about COVID by 37%, perceived stress, 46%, and loneliness, 32%.\n\nCOVID patients with a history of depression or anxiety are also more likely than others to report trouble with cognition in the weeks after a COVID infection and to develop brain fog and long COVID, [UCLA researchers found.](https:\/\/jamanetwork.com\/journals\/jamanetworkopen\/fullarticle\/2804555) They evaluated 766 people with a confirmed COVID infection; 36% said their thinking was affected within 4 weeks of the infection. Those with anxiety and depression were more likely to report those difficulties.\n\n#### **Long COVID, Then Anxiety, Depression, Brain Changes**\nEven mild cases of COVID infection can lead to long COVID and brain changes in those who suffer anxiety or depression after the infection, according to Clarissa Yasuda, MD, PhD, assistant professor of neurology at the University of Campinas in Sao Paulo, Brazil. She has researched long COVID’s effects on the brain, even as she is coping with being a long COVID patient.\n\nIn one of her studies, presented at the 2023 American Academy of Neurology meeting in April, she found brain changes in people with anxiety, depression, and COVID but not in those infected who did not have either mental health issue. She evaluated 254 people, median age 41, after about 82 days from their positive PCR test for COVID. Everyone completed a standard questionnaire for depression (the Beck Depression Inventory) and another for anxiety (the Beck Anxiety Inventory). She further divided them into two groups — the 102 with symptoms and the 152 who had no symptoms of either depression or anxiety.\n\nBrain scans showed those with COVID who also had anxiety and depression had shrinkage in the limbic area of the brain (which helps process emotion and memory), while those infected who didn’t have anxiety or depression did not. The researchers then scanned the brains of 148 healthy people without COVID and found no shrinkage.\n\nThe atrophy, Yasuda said, “is not something you can see with your eyes. It was only detected with computer analysis. Visualization on an MRI is normal.”\n\nThe number of people in this study with mental health issues was surprisingly high, Yasuda said. “It was intriguing for us that we noticed many individuals have both symptoms, anxiety and depression. We were not expecting it at that proportion.”\n\nThe researchers found a pattern of change not only in brain structure but in brain communication. They found those changes by using specialized software to analyze brain networks in some of the participants. Those with anxiety and depression had widespread functional changes in each of 12 networks tested. The participants without mental health symptoms showed changes in just 5 networks. These changes are enough to lead to problems with thinking skills and memory, Yasuda said.\n\n#### **Explaining the Links**\nSeveral ideas have been proposed to explain the link between psychological distress and long COVID risk, Wang said. “The first and most mainstream mechanism for long COVID is chronic inflammation and immune dysregulation,” she said. “Several mental health conditions, such as anxiety and depression, are associated with inflammation and dysfunction and that might be the link between depression, anxiety, and long COVID.”\n\nAnother less mainstream hypothesis, she said, is that “those with long COVID have more autoantibodies and they are more likely to have blood clotting issues. These have also been found in people with anxiety, depression, or other psychological distress.”\n\nOther researchers are looking more broadly at how COVID infections affect the brain. When German researchers evaluated the brain and other body parts of 20 patients who died from non-COVID causes but had documented COVID infections, they found that 12 had [accumulations](https:\/\/www.biorxiv.org\/content\/10.1101\/2023.04.04.535604v1) of the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein in the brain tissue as well as the skull and meninges, the membranes that line the skull and spinal cord. Healthy controls did not.\n\nThe findings suggest the persistence of the spike protein may contribute to the long-term neurological symptoms of long COVID and may also lead to understanding of the molecular mechanisms as well as therapies for long COVID, the researchers said in their preprint report, which has not yet been peer-reviewed.\n\nIn another recent [study,](https:\/\/www.pnas.org\/doi\/10.1073\/pnas.2217232120) researchers from Hamburg, Germany, performed neuroimaging and neuropsychological assessments of 223 people who were not vaccinated and recovered from mild to moderate COVID infections, comparing them to 223 matched healthy controls who had the same testing. In those infected, they found alterations in the cerebral white matter but no worse cognitive function in the first year after recovering. They conclude that the infection triggers a prolonged neuroinflammatory response.\n\nCan the brain changes reverse? “We don’t have an answer right now, but we are working on that,” Yasuda said. For now, she speculates about the return of brain volume: “I think for most it will. But I think we need to treat the symptoms. We can’t disregard the symptoms of long COVID. People are suffering a lot, and this suffering is causing some brain damage.”\n\n#### **Lifestyle Habits and Risk of Long COVID**\nMeanwhile, [healthy lifestyle habits](https:\/\/jamanetwork.com\/journals\/jamainternalmedicine\/fullarticle\/2800885) in those infected can reduce the risk of long COVID, research by Wang and her colleagues found. They followed nearly 2,000 women with a positive COVID test over 19 months. Of these, 44%, or 871, developed long COVID. Compared with women who followed none of the healthy lifestyle habits evaluated, those with five to six of the habits had a 49% lower risk of long COVID.\n\nThe habits included: a healthy BMI (18.5 to 24.9), never smoking, at least 150 minutes weekly of moderate to vigorous physical activity, moderate alcohol intake (5-15 grams a day), high diet quality, and good sleep (7-9 hours nightly).\n\n#### **Long-Term Solutions**\nYasuda hopes that mental health care — of those infected and those not — will be taken more seriously. In her [commentary](https:\/\/www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov\/pmc\/articles\/PMC9387179\/) on her own long COVID experience, she wrote, in part: “I fear for the numerous survivors of COVID-19 who do not have access to medical attention for their post-COVID symptoms. … The mental health system needs to become prepared to receive survivors with different neuropsychiatric symptoms, including anxiety and depression.”\n\nBy Kathleen Doheny\n\n#### **Sources**\nClarissa Yasuda, MD, PhD, assistant professor of neurology at the University of Campinas, Sao Paulo, Brazil.\n\nSiwen Wang, MD, research fellow, T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Harvard University, Boston.\n\n*JAMA Psychiatry:* Associations of Depression, Anxiety, Worry, Perceived Stress, and Loneliness Prior to Infection With Risk of Post-COVID-19 Conditions.”\n\nAmerican Academy of Neurology 2023 Annual Meeting, April 22-27: “Anxiety and Depression Are Associated with Limbic Atrophy and Severe Disruption Of Brain Functional Connectivity After Mild COVID-19 Infection.”\n\nCDC: “Long COVID or Post-COVID Conditions,” “Fast Stats: Mental Health.”\n\n*bioRxiv:* “SARS-CoV-2 Spike Protein Accumulation in the Skull-Meninges-Brain Axis: Potential Implications for Long-Term Neurological Complications in post-COVID-19.”\n\n*PNAS:* “Brain imaging and neuropsychological assessment of individuals recovered from a mild to moderate SARS-CoV-2 infection.”\n\n*JAMA Internal Medicine:* “Adherence to Healthy Lifestyle Prior to Infection and Risk of Post-COVID-19 Condition.”\n\n*JAMA Network Open:* “Perceived Cognitive Deficits in Patients With Symptomatic SARS-CoV-2 and Their Association with Post-COVID-19 Condition.”\n\nGallup: “U.S. Depression Rates Reach New Highs.”\n\n*Arquivos de Neuro-Psiquiatria:* “My journey after a mild infection with COVID-19: I want my old brain back.”\n\n**Source :** [Medscape](https:\/\/www.medscape.com\/viewarticle\/992719#vp_1)\n\n## Related HIV and Co-Infections News\n[See all related HIV and Co-Infections News](https:\/\/www.eatg.org\/hiv-co-infections-news\/?hivnews_cat=covid-19 \"See all related HIV and Co-Infections News\")\n\n- [April 15, 2026 Healio: Q\\&A: Lessons in long COVID management](https:\/\/www.eatg.org\/hiv-news\/healio-qa-lessons-in-long-covid-management\/)\n- [April 3, 2026 Healio: Maternal COVID-19 vaccination protects infants for up to 6 months](https:\/\/www.eatg.org\/hiv-news\/healio-maternal-covid-19-vaccination-protects-infants-for-up-to-6-months\/)\n- [March 1, 2026 EMA: First combined COVID-19 and influenza vaccine for people 50 years and older](https:\/\/www.eatg.org\/hiv-news\/ema-first-combined-covid-19-and-influenza-vaccine-for-people-50-years-and-older\/)\n\n### **Get involved**\nAre you living with HIV\/AIDS? Are you part of a community affected by HIV\/AIDS and co-infections? Do you work or volunteer in the field? Are you motivated by our cause and interested to support our work?\n\n- [Become a member](https:\/\/www.eatg.org\/become-a-member\/)\n- [Support us](https:\/\/www.eatg.org\/support-us\/)\n\n### **Subscribe**\nStay in the loop and get all the important EATG updates in your inbox with the EATG newsletter. The HIV & co-infections bulletin is your source of handpicked news from the field arriving regularly to your inbox.\n\n- [EATG Newsletter](http:\/\/eepurl.com\/duRu4D)\n- [HIV\\&Co-infections Bulletin](http:\/\/eepurl.com\/b582Sn)\n\n- [Home](https:\/\/www.eatg.org\/)\n- [About us](https:\/\/www.eatg.org\/about-us\/)\n- [What we do](https:\/\/www.eatg.org\/what-we-do\/)\n- [Resources](https:\/\/www.eatg.org\/resources\/)\n- [Latest](https:\/\/www.eatg.org\/latest\/)\n- [Contact](https:\/\/www.eatg.org\/contact\/)\n\nEATG\n\nInteroffices \\| Avenue des Arts 56-4c 1000 Brussels Belgium\n\n- Phone: [\\+32 2 626 96 40](tel:003226269640 \"Call EATG\")\n- Mail:\n\n© 2026 European AIDS Treatment Group\n\n- [Legal notice](https:\/\/www.eatg.org\/legal-notice\/)\n- [Privacy Policy](https:\/\/www.eatg.org\/privacy-policy\/)\n- [Cookie policy](https:\/\/www.eatg.org\/cookie-policy\/)\n- [Glossary](https:\/\/www.eatg.org\/glossary\/)\n\n[Noomia, Web agency](https:\/\/noomia.be\/)\n\nThis website uses cookies. Some cookies are necessary for the proper functioning of the website and can not be refused if you want to visit this website. Other cookies are used for social network sharing, video playback and analysis purposes. You can refuse them if you want. [Read our cookie policy](https:\/\/www.eatg.org\/cookie-policy\/)\n\nAccept\n\nRefuse non-functional cookies","attrs_readable_markdown":"Anxiety, depression, and COVID-19 can be a bad combination for your brain — and your long-term health.\n\nHaving anxiety and depression *before* a COVID infection increases the risk of developing long COVID, [researchers have found.](https:\/\/jamanetwork.com\/journals\/jamapsychiatry\/fullarticle\/2796097)\n\nThose with long COVID who develop anxiety and depression *after* an infection may have [brain shrinkage](https:\/\/aanfiles.blob.core.windows.net\/aanfiles\/d6ad7486-84cc-4d08-9bf3-e3b7c9825d8f\/EMBARGOED%202023%20AAN%20AM%20Abstract%20%231998%20-%20Anxiety%20and%20Depression%20Are%20Associated%20with%20Limbic%20Atrophy%20and%20Severe%20Disruption%20Of%20Brain%20Functional%20Connectivity....pdf) in areas that regulate memory, emotion, and other functions as well as disruption of brain connectivity.\n\nWhile many questions remain about these intertwined relationships, the associations aren’t a complete surprise. Experts already know that depression and anxiety are associated with inflammation and immune dysfunction, perhaps helping to explain the link between these mental health conditions, the risk of long COVID, and the changes in the brain.\n\nBrain changes accompanying a COVID infection have concerned researchers since earlier in the pandemic, when U.K. Biobank researchers [found](https:\/\/www.nature.com\/articles\/s41586-022-04569-5) brain atrophy, loss of grey matter, and decline in cognition in those infected with COVID compared with those not infected.\n\n#### **Common Conditions**\nThe ramifications of the research linking anxiety, depression and long COVID are far-reaching. According to the [CDC,](https:\/\/www.cdc.gov\/nchs\/fastats\/mental-health.htm) 12.5% of U.S. adults have regular feelings of anxiety (as well as nervousness and worry), and the latest [Gallup Poll](https:\/\/news.gallup.com\/poll\/505745\/depression-rates-reach-new-highs.aspx) found that nearly 18% of adults currently have or are being treated for depression.\n\nAs of May 8, 10% of U.S. infected adults have long COVID, according to the [CDC,](https:\/\/www.cdc.gov\/nchs\/covid19\/pulse\/long-covid.htm) and among U.S. adults ever infected, 27% have reported long COVID. Long COVID has been [defined](https:\/\/www.cdc.gov\/coronavirus\/2019-ncov\/long-term-effects\/index.html) by the CDC as symptoms such as fatigue, brain fog, and cough that persist longer than 4 weeks and by the [World Health Organization](https:\/\/www.who.int\/europe\/news-room\/fact-sheets\/item\/post-covid-19-condition) as symptoms persisting for 3 months or more.\n\nHere’s a roundup of what the research shows about mental health and long COVID risk — along with other research finding that paying attention to health habits may reduce that risk.\n\n#### **Pre-Existing Depression, Anxiety, and Long COVID Risk**\nA history of mental health issues — including depression, anxiety, worry, perceived stress, and loneliness — raises the risk of long COVID if infection occurs, Harvard researchers have found.\n\nThe researchers evaluated data from three large, ongoing studies including nearly 55,000 participants to determine the effects of high levels of psychological distress before a COVID infection.\n\n“Our study was purely survey based,” said Siwen Wang, MD, the study’s lead author and a research fellow at Harvard’s T.H. Chan School of Public Health at Harvard University.\n\nAt the start of the survey in April 2020, none of the participants reported a current or previous COVID infection. They answered surveys about psychological distress at the start of the study, at 6 monthly time points, then quarterly until November 2021.\n\nOver the follow up, 3,193 people reported a positive COVID test and 43% of those, or 1,403, developed long COVID. That number may seem high, but 38% of the 55,000 were active health care workers. On the final questionnaire, they reported whether their symptoms persisted for 4 weeks or longer and thus had long COVID by the standard CDC definition.\n\nWang’s team then looked at the infected participants’ psychological status. Anxiety raised the risk of long COVID by 42%, depression by 32%, worry about COVID by 37%, perceived stress, 46%, and loneliness, 32%.\n\nCOVID patients with a history of depression or anxiety are also more likely than others to report trouble with cognition in the weeks after a COVID infection and to develop brain fog and long COVID, [UCLA researchers found.](https:\/\/jamanetwork.com\/journals\/jamanetworkopen\/fullarticle\/2804555) They evaluated 766 people with a confirmed COVID infection; 36% said their thinking was affected within 4 weeks of the infection. Those with anxiety and depression were more likely to report those difficulties.\n\n#### **Long COVID, Then Anxiety, Depression, Brain Changes**\nEven mild cases of COVID infection can lead to long COVID and brain changes in those who suffer anxiety or depression after the infection, according to Clarissa Yasuda, MD, PhD, assistant professor of neurology at the University of Campinas in Sao Paulo, Brazil. She has researched long COVID’s effects on the brain, even as she is coping with being a long COVID patient.\n\nIn one of her studies, presented at the 2023 American Academy of Neurology meeting in April, she found brain changes in people with anxiety, depression, and COVID but not in those infected who did not have either mental health issue. She evaluated 254 people, median age 41, after about 82 days from their positive PCR test for COVID. Everyone completed a standard questionnaire for depression (the Beck Depression Inventory) and another for anxiety (the Beck Anxiety Inventory). She further divided them into two groups — the 102 with symptoms and the 152 who had no symptoms of either depression or anxiety.\n\nBrain scans showed those with COVID who also had anxiety and depression had shrinkage in the limbic area of the brain (which helps process emotion and memory), while those infected who didn’t have anxiety or depression did not. The researchers then scanned the brains of 148 healthy people without COVID and found no shrinkage.\n\nThe atrophy, Yasuda said, “is not something you can see with your eyes. It was only detected with computer analysis. Visualization on an MRI is normal.”\n\nThe number of people in this study with mental health issues was surprisingly high, Yasuda said. “It was intriguing for us that we noticed many individuals have both symptoms, anxiety and depression. We were not expecting it at that proportion.”\n\nThe researchers found a pattern of change not only in brain structure but in brain communication. They found those changes by using specialized software to analyze brain networks in some of the participants. Those with anxiety and depression had widespread functional changes in each of 12 networks tested. The participants without mental health symptoms showed changes in just 5 networks. These changes are enough to lead to problems with thinking skills and memory, Yasuda said.\n\n#### **Explaining the Links**\nSeveral ideas have been proposed to explain the link between psychological distress and long COVID risk, Wang said. “The first and most mainstream mechanism for long COVID is chronic inflammation and immune dysregulation,” she said. “Several mental health conditions, such as anxiety and depression, are associated with inflammation and dysfunction and that might be the link between depression, anxiety, and long COVID.”\n\nAnother less mainstream hypothesis, she said, is that “those with long COVID have more autoantibodies and they are more likely to have blood clotting issues. These have also been found in people with anxiety, depression, or other psychological distress.”\n\nOther researchers are looking more broadly at how COVID infections affect the brain. When German researchers evaluated the brain and other body parts of 20 patients who died from non-COVID causes but had documented COVID infections, they found that 12 had [accumulations](https:\/\/www.biorxiv.org\/content\/10.1101\/2023.04.04.535604v1) of the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein in the brain tissue as well as the skull and meninges, the membranes that line the skull and spinal cord. Healthy controls did not.\n\nThe findings suggest the persistence of the spike protein may contribute to the long-term neurological symptoms of long COVID and may also lead to understanding of the molecular mechanisms as well as therapies for long COVID, the researchers said in their preprint report, which has not yet been peer-reviewed.\n\nIn another recent [study,](https:\/\/www.pnas.org\/doi\/10.1073\/pnas.2217232120) researchers from Hamburg, Germany, performed neuroimaging and neuropsychological assessments of 223 people who were not vaccinated and recovered from mild to moderate COVID infections, comparing them to 223 matched healthy controls who had the same testing. In those infected, they found alterations in the cerebral white matter but no worse cognitive function in the first year after recovering. They conclude that the infection triggers a prolonged neuroinflammatory response.\n\nCan the brain changes reverse? “We don’t have an answer right now, but we are working on that,” Yasuda said. For now, she speculates about the return of brain volume: “I think for most it will. But I think we need to treat the symptoms. We can’t disregard the symptoms of long COVID. People are suffering a lot, and this suffering is causing some brain damage.”\n\n#### **Lifestyle Habits and Risk of Long COVID**\nMeanwhile, [healthy lifestyle habits](https:\/\/jamanetwork.com\/journals\/jamainternalmedicine\/fullarticle\/2800885) in those infected can reduce the risk of long COVID, research by Wang and her colleagues found. They followed nearly 2,000 women with a positive COVID test over 19 months. Of these, 44%, or 871, developed long COVID. Compared with women who followed none of the healthy lifestyle habits evaluated, those with five to six of the habits had a 49% lower risk of long COVID.\n\nThe habits included: a healthy BMI (18.5 to 24.9), never smoking, at least 150 minutes weekly of moderate to vigorous physical activity, moderate alcohol intake (5-15 grams a day), high diet quality, and good sleep (7-9 hours nightly).\n\n#### **Long-Term Solutions**\nYasuda hopes that mental health care — of those infected and those not — will be taken more seriously. In her [commentary](https:\/\/www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov\/pmc\/articles\/PMC9387179\/) on her own long COVID experience, she wrote, in part: “I fear for the numerous survivors of COVID-19 who do not have access to medical attention for their post-COVID symptoms. … The mental health system needs to become prepared to receive survivors with different neuropsychiatric symptoms, including anxiety and depression.”\n\nBy Kathleen Doheny\n\n#### **Sources**\nClarissa Yasuda, MD, PhD, assistant professor of neurology at the University of Campinas, Sao Paulo, Brazil.\n\nSiwen Wang, MD, research fellow, T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Harvard University, Boston.\n\n*JAMA Psychiatry:* Associations of Depression, Anxiety, Worry, Perceived Stress, and Loneliness Prior to Infection With Risk of Post-COVID-19 Conditions.”\n\nAmerican Academy of Neurology 2023 Annual Meeting, April 22-27: “Anxiety and Depression Are Associated with Limbic Atrophy and Severe Disruption Of Brain Functional Connectivity After Mild COVID-19 Infection.”\n\nCDC: “Long COVID or Post-COVID Conditions,” “Fast Stats: Mental Health.”\n\n*bioRxiv:* “SARS-CoV-2 Spike Protein Accumulation in the Skull-Meninges-Brain Axis: Potential Implications for Long-Term Neurological Complications in post-COVID-19.”\n\n*PNAS:* “Brain imaging and neuropsychological assessment of individuals recovered from a mild to moderate SARS-CoV-2 infection.”\n\n*JAMA Internal Medicine:* “Adherence to Healthy Lifestyle Prior to Infection and Risk of Post-COVID-19 Condition.”\n\n*JAMA Network Open:* “Perceived Cognitive Deficits in Patients With Symptomatic SARS-CoV-2 and Their Association with Post-COVID-19 Condition.”\n\nGallup: “U.S. Depression Rates Reach New Highs.”\n\n*Arquivos de Neuro-Psiquiatria:* “My journey after a mild infection with COVID-19: I want my old brain back.”","meta_canonical":null,"ml_categories_json":"","ml_types_json":"","ml_intent_types_json":"","meta_language":"en-us","attrs_author":null,"attrs_publish_time":0,"attrs_original_publish_time":1686009588,"attrs_is_republished":0,"attrs_nr_words":"2147","attrs_boilerpipe_nr_words":"1699","body_ext_links_number":27,"body_int_links_number":49,"meta_nofollow":0,"meta_noarchive":0,"props_was_rendered":0,"src_redirect":"","download_time_msec":1043,"download_ttfb_msec":1023,"download_size":16406}

3. Robots.txt Check

Query:

Response:

4. Spam/Ban Check

Query:

Response:

5. Seen Status Check

ℹ️ Skipped - page is already crawled

📄

INDEXABLE

✅

CRAWLED

6 days ago

🤖

ROBOTS ALLOWED

Page Info Filters

Filter	Status	Condition	Details
HTTP status	PASS	`download_http_code = 200`	HTTP 200
Age cutoff	PASS	`download_stamp > now() - 6 MONTH`	0.2 months ago
History drop	PASS	`isNull(history_drop_reason)`	No drop reason
Spam/ban	PASS	`fh_dont_index != 1 AND ml_spam_score = 0`	ml_spam_score=0
Canonical	PASS	`meta_canonical IS NULL OR = '' OR = src_unparsed`	Not set

Page Details

Property	Value
URL	https://www.eatg.org/hiv-news/anxiety-your-brain-and-long-covid-what-the-research-says/
Last Crawled	2026-04-16 18:01:47 (6 days ago)
First Indexed	2023-06-05 23:59:48 (2 years ago)
HTTP Status Code	200
Content
Meta Title	Anxiety, your brain, and long COVID: What the research says \| EATG
Meta Description	Anxiety, depression, and COVID-19 can be a bad combination for your brain -- and your long-term health.
Meta Canonical	null
Boilerpipe Text	Anxiety, depression, and COVID-19 can be a bad combination for your brain — and your long-term health. Having anxiety and depression before a COVID infection increases the risk of developing long COVID, researchers have found. Those with long COVID who develop anxiety and depression after an infection may have brain shrinkage in areas that regulate memory, emotion, and other functions as well as disruption of brain connectivity. While many questions remain about these intertwined relationships, the associations aren’t a complete surprise. Experts already know that depression and anxiety are associated with inflammation and immune dysfunction, perhaps helping to explain the link between these mental health conditions, the risk of long COVID, and the changes in the brain. Brain changes accompanying a COVID infection have concerned researchers since earlier in the pandemic, when U.K. Biobank researchers found brain atrophy, loss of grey matter, and decline in cognition in those infected with COVID compared with those not infected. Common Conditions The ramifications of the research linking anxiety, depression and long COVID are far-reaching. According to the CDC, 12.5% of U.S. adults have regular feelings of anxiety (as well as nervousness and worry), and the latest Gallup Poll found that nearly 18% of adults currently have or are being treated for depression. As of May 8, 10% of U.S. infected adults have long COVID, according to the CDC, and among U.S. adults ever infected, 27% have reported long COVID. Long COVID has been defined by the CDC as symptoms such as fatigue, brain fog, and cough that persist longer than 4 weeks and by the World Health Organization as symptoms persisting for 3 months or more. Here’s a roundup of what the research shows about mental health and long COVID risk — along with other research finding that paying attention to health habits may reduce that risk. Pre-Existing Depression, Anxiety, and Long COVID Risk A history of mental health issues — including depression, anxiety, worry, perceived stress, and loneliness — raises the risk of long COVID if infection occurs, Harvard researchers have found. The researchers evaluated data from three large, ongoing studies including nearly 55,000 participants to determine the effects of high levels of psychological distress before a COVID infection. “Our study was purely survey based,” said Siwen Wang, MD, the study’s lead author and a research fellow at Harvard’s T.H. Chan School of Public Health at Harvard University. At the start of the survey in April 2020, none of the participants reported a current or previous COVID infection. They answered surveys about psychological distress at the start of the study, at 6 monthly time points, then quarterly until November 2021. Over the follow up, 3,193 people reported a positive COVID test and 43% of those, or 1,403, developed long COVID. That number may seem high, but 38% of the 55,000 were active health care workers. On the final questionnaire, they reported whether their symptoms persisted for 4 weeks or longer and thus had long COVID by the standard CDC definition. Wang’s team then looked at the infected participants’ psychological status. Anxiety raised the risk of long COVID by 42%, depression by 32%, worry about COVID by 37%, perceived stress, 46%, and loneliness, 32%. COVID patients with a history of depression or anxiety are also more likely than others to report trouble with cognition in the weeks after a COVID infection and to develop brain fog and long COVID, UCLA researchers found. They evaluated 766 people with a confirmed COVID infection; 36% said their thinking was affected within 4 weeks of the infection. Those with anxiety and depression were more likely to report those difficulties. Long COVID, Then Anxiety, Depression, Brain Changes Even mild cases of COVID infection can lead to long COVID and brain changes in those who suffer anxiety or depression after the infection, according to Clarissa Yasuda, MD, PhD, assistant professor of neurology at the University of Campinas in Sao Paulo, Brazil. She has researched long COVID’s effects on the brain, even as she is coping with being a long COVID patient. In one of her studies, presented at the 2023 American Academy of Neurology meeting in April, she found brain changes in people with anxiety, depression, and COVID but not in those infected who did not have either mental health issue. She evaluated 254 people, median age 41, after about 82 days from their positive PCR test for COVID. Everyone completed a standard questionnaire for depression (the Beck Depression Inventory) and another for anxiety (the Beck Anxiety Inventory). She further divided them into two groups — the 102 with symptoms and the 152 who had no symptoms of either depression or anxiety. Brain scans showed those with COVID who also had anxiety and depression had shrinkage in the limbic area of the brain (which helps process emotion and memory), while those infected who didn’t have anxiety or depression did not. The researchers then scanned the brains of 148 healthy people without COVID and found no shrinkage. The atrophy, Yasuda said, “is not something you can see with your eyes. It was only detected with computer analysis. Visualization on an MRI is normal.” The number of people in this study with mental health issues was surprisingly high, Yasuda said. “It was intriguing for us that we noticed many individuals have both symptoms, anxiety and depression. We were not expecting it at that proportion.” The researchers found a pattern of change not only in brain structure but in brain communication. They found those changes by using specialized software to analyze brain networks in some of the participants. Those with anxiety and depression had widespread functional changes in each of 12 networks tested. The participants without mental health symptoms showed changes in just 5 networks. These changes are enough to lead to problems with thinking skills and memory, Yasuda said. Explaining the Links Several ideas have been proposed to explain the link between psychological distress and long COVID risk, Wang said. “The first and most mainstream mechanism for long COVID is chronic inflammation and immune dysregulation,” she said. “Several mental health conditions, such as anxiety and depression, are associated with inflammation and dysfunction and that might be the link between depression, anxiety, and long COVID.” Another less mainstream hypothesis, she said, is that “those with long COVID have more autoantibodies and they are more likely to have blood clotting issues. These have also been found in people with anxiety, depression, or other psychological distress.” Other researchers are looking more broadly at how COVID infections affect the brain. When German researchers evaluated the brain and other body parts of 20 patients who died from non-COVID causes but had documented COVID infections, they found that 12 had accumulations of the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein in the brain tissue as well as the skull and meninges, the membranes that line the skull and spinal cord. Healthy controls did not. The findings suggest the persistence of the spike protein may contribute to the long-term neurological symptoms of long COVID and may also lead to understanding of the molecular mechanisms as well as therapies for long COVID, the researchers said in their preprint report, which has not yet been peer-reviewed. In another recent study, researchers from Hamburg, Germany, performed neuroimaging and neuropsychological assessments of 223 people who were not vaccinated and recovered from mild to moderate COVID infections, comparing them to 223 matched healthy controls who had the same testing. In those infected, they found alterations in the cerebral white matter but no worse cognitive function in the first year after recovering. They conclude that the infection triggers a prolonged neuroinflammatory response. Can the brain changes reverse? “We don’t have an answer right now, but we are working on that,” Yasuda said. For now, she speculates about the return of brain volume: “I think for most it will. But I think we need to treat the symptoms. We can’t disregard the symptoms of long COVID. People are suffering a lot, and this suffering is causing some brain damage.” Lifestyle Habits and Risk of Long COVID Meanwhile, healthy lifestyle habits in those infected can reduce the risk of long COVID, research by Wang and her colleagues found. They followed nearly 2,000 women with a positive COVID test over 19 months. Of these, 44%, or 871, developed long COVID. Compared with women who followed none of the healthy lifestyle habits evaluated, those with five to six of the habits had a 49% lower risk of long COVID. The habits included: a healthy BMI (18.5 to 24.9), never smoking, at least 150 minutes weekly of moderate to vigorous physical activity, moderate alcohol intake (5-15 grams a day), high diet quality, and good sleep (7-9 hours nightly). Long-Term Solutions Yasuda hopes that mental health care — of those infected and those not — will be taken more seriously. In her commentary on her own long COVID experience, she wrote, in part: “I fear for the numerous survivors of COVID-19 who do not have access to medical attention for their post-COVID symptoms. … The mental health system needs to become prepared to receive survivors with different neuropsychiatric symptoms, including anxiety and depression.” By Kathleen Doheny Sources Clarissa Yasuda, MD, PhD, assistant professor of neurology at the University of Campinas, Sao Paulo, Brazil. Siwen Wang, MD, research fellow, T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Harvard University, Boston. JAMA Psychiatry: Associations of Depression, Anxiety, Worry, Perceived Stress, and Loneliness Prior to Infection With Risk of Post-COVID-19 Conditions.” American Academy of Neurology 2023 Annual Meeting, April 22-27: “Anxiety and Depression Are Associated with Limbic Atrophy and Severe Disruption Of Brain Functional Connectivity After Mild COVID-19 Infection.” CDC: “Long COVID or Post-COVID Conditions,” “Fast Stats: Mental Health.” bioRxiv: “SARS-CoV-2 Spike Protein Accumulation in the Skull-Meninges-Brain Axis: Potential Implications for Long-Term Neurological Complications in post-COVID-19.” PNAS: “Brain imaging and neuropsychological assessment of individuals recovered from a mild to moderate SARS-CoV-2 infection.” JAMA Internal Medicine: “Adherence to Healthy Lifestyle Prior to Infection and Risk of Post-COVID-19 Condition.” JAMA Network Open: “Perceived Cognitive Deficits in Patients With Symptomatic SARS-CoV-2 and Their Association with Post-COVID-19 Condition.” Gallup: “U.S. Depression Rates Reach New Highs.” Arquivos de Neuro-Psiquiatria: “My journey after a mild infection with COVID-19: I want my old brain back.”
Markdown	- [It Starts and Ends with Us: Community at the Centre of Clinical Studies](https://www.eatg.org/it-starts-and-ends-with-us/) [![](https://www.eatg.org/wp-content/themes/eatg/library/img//logo-eatg.png)](https://www.eatg.org/ "EATG") - [About us](https://www.eatg.org/about-us/) - [Who we are](https://www.eatg.org/who-we-are/) - [Our people](https://www.eatg.org/about-us/#our-people) - [Our strategy](https://www.eatg.org/our-strategy/) - [How we work](https://www.eatg.org/how-we-work/) - [Compliance and Bylaws](https://www.eatg.org/about-us/#compliance-and-bylaws) - [Partners](https://www.eatg.org/partners/) - [Donors](https://www.eatg.org/donors/) - [What we do](https://www.eatg.org/what-we-do/) - [Programmes](https://www.eatg.org/programmes/) - [Projects](https://www.eatg.org/projects/) - [Initiatives](https://www.eatg.org/initiatives/) - [Events](https://www.eatg.org/events/) - [Campaigns](https://www.eatg.org/campaigns/) - [Resources](https://www.eatg.org/resources/) - [Publications](https://www.eatg.org/publications/) - [Position papers](https://www.eatg.org/position-papers/) - [Press releases and Statements](https://www.eatg.org/press-releases-and-statements/) - [Endorsements and Sign-Ons](https://www.eatg.org/endorsements-and-sign-ons/) - [Infographics and Visuals](https://www.eatg.org/infographics-and-visuals/) - [Audio and Video](https://www.eatg.org/audio-and-video/) - [Thematic archives](https://www.eatg.org/resources/#tunnel-links) - [Women](https://www.eatg.org/women/) - [Ageing](https://www.eatg.org/ageing/) - [COVID-19](https://www.eatg.org/covid-19/) - [DoxyPEP](https://www.eatg.org/publications/doxypep/) - [e-MPOWER Youth Activist Toolbox](https://www.eatg.org/e-mpower-youth-activist-toolbox/) - [PROMise Community Activist Toolbox](https://www.eatg.org/promise-community-activist-toolbox/) - [RBDCOV Community Engagement Toolbox](https://www.eatg.org/rbdcov-community-engagement-toolbox/) - [Latest](https://www.eatg.org/latest/) - [News](https://www.eatg.org/news/) - [Blogs](https://www.eatg.org/blogs/) - [Calls and Vacancies](https://www.eatg.org/calls/) - [Calendar](https://www.eatg.org/calendar/) - [HIV and Co-infections News](https://www.eatg.org/hiv-co-infections-news/) - [Programme Newsletters](https://www.eatg.org/programme-newsletters/) - [Search](https://www.eatg.org/hiv-news/anxiety-your-brain-and-long-covid-what-the-research-says/) Navigation - [MyEATG](https://my.eatg.org/) - [Contact](https://www.eatg.org/contact/) - [Donate](https://www.eatg.org/donate/) - [Get involved](https://www.eatg.org/hiv-news/anxiety-your-brain-and-long-covid-what-the-research-says/#ctas-left) - [Subscribe](https://www.eatg.org/hiv-news/anxiety-your-brain-and-long-covid-what-the-research-says/#ctas-right) - [About us](https://www.eatg.org/about-us/) - [Who we are](https://www.eatg.org/who-we-are/) - [Our people](https://www.eatg.org/about-us/#our-people) - [Our strategy](https://www.eatg.org/our-strategy/) - [How we work](https://www.eatg.org/how-we-work/) - [Compliance and Bylaws](https://www.eatg.org/about-us/#compliance-and-bylaws) - [Partners](https://www.eatg.org/partners/) - [Donors](https://www.eatg.org/donors/) - [What we do](https://www.eatg.org/what-we-do/) - [Programmes](https://www.eatg.org/programmes/) - [Projects](https://www.eatg.org/projects/) - [Initiatives](https://www.eatg.org/initiatives/) - [Events](https://www.eatg.org/events/) - [Campaigns](https://www.eatg.org/campaigns/) - [Resources](https://www.eatg.org/resources/) - [Publications](https://www.eatg.org/publications/) - [Position papers](https://www.eatg.org/position-papers/) - [Press releases and Statements](https://www.eatg.org/press-releases-and-statements/) - [Endorsements and Sign-Ons](https://www.eatg.org/endorsements-and-sign-ons/) - [Infographics and Visuals](https://www.eatg.org/infographics-and-visuals/) - [Audio and Video](https://www.eatg.org/audio-and-video/) - [Thematic archives](https://www.eatg.org/resources/#tunnel-links) - [Women](https://www.eatg.org/women/) - [Ageing](https://www.eatg.org/ageing/) - [COVID-19](https://www.eatg.org/covid-19/) - [DoxyPEP](https://www.eatg.org/publications/doxypep/) - [e-MPOWER Youth Activist Toolbox](https://www.eatg.org/e-mpower-youth-activist-toolbox/) - [PROMise Community Activist Toolbox](https://www.eatg.org/promise-community-activist-toolbox/) - [RBDCOV Community Engagement Toolbox](https://www.eatg.org/rbdcov-community-engagement-toolbox/) - [Latest](https://www.eatg.org/latest/) - [News](https://www.eatg.org/news/) - [Blogs](https://www.eatg.org/blogs/) - [Calls and Vacancies](https://www.eatg.org/calls/) - [Calendar](https://www.eatg.org/calendar/) - [HIV and Co-infections News](https://www.eatg.org/hiv-co-infections-news/) - [Programme Newsletters](https://www.eatg.org/programme-newsletters/) - [Search](https://www.eatg.org/hiv-news/anxiety-your-brain-and-long-covid-what-the-research-says/) - [MyEATG](https://my.eatg.org/) - [Contact](https://www.eatg.org/contact/) # Anxiety, your brain, and long COVID: What the research says [Back to the "HIV and Co-Infections News" list](https://www.eatg.org/hiv-co-infections-news/ "Go back to the \"HIV and Co-Infections News\" list") ![](https://www.eatg.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/wbst-hiv-and-co-infections-eatg-2-sq-900x500.png) Shutterstock - COVID-19 June 5, 2023 Tags: - [Long COVID](https://www.eatg.org/hiv-co-infections-news/?hivnews_tag=long-covid) Share: Anxiety, depression, and COVID-19 can be a bad combination for your brain — and your long-term health. Having anxiety and depression before a COVID infection increases the risk of developing long COVID, [researchers have found.](https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamapsychiatry/fullarticle/2796097) Those with long COVID who develop anxiety and depression after an infection may have [brain shrinkage](https://aanfiles.blob.core.windows.net/aanfiles/d6ad7486-84cc-4d08-9bf3-e3b7c9825d8f/EMBARGOED%202023%20AAN%20AM%20Abstract%20%231998%20-%20Anxiety%20and%20Depression%20Are%20Associated%20with%20Limbic%20Atrophy%20and%20Severe%20Disruption%20Of%20Brain%20Functional%20Connectivity....pdf) in areas that regulate memory, emotion, and other functions as well as disruption of brain connectivity. While many questions remain about these intertwined relationships, the associations aren’t a complete surprise. Experts already know that depression and anxiety are associated with inflammation and immune dysfunction, perhaps helping to explain the link between these mental health conditions, the risk of long COVID, and the changes in the brain. Brain changes accompanying a COVID infection have concerned researchers since earlier in the pandemic, when U.K. Biobank researchers [found](https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-022-04569-5) brain atrophy, loss of grey matter, and decline in cognition in those infected with COVID compared with those not infected. #### Common Conditions The ramifications of the research linking anxiety, depression and long COVID are far-reaching. According to the [CDC,](https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/fastats/mental-health.htm) 12.5% of U.S. adults have regular feelings of anxiety (as well as nervousness and worry), and the latest [Gallup Poll](https://news.gallup.com/poll/505745/depression-rates-reach-new-highs.aspx) found that nearly 18% of adults currently have or are being treated for depression. As of May 8, 10% of U.S. infected adults have long COVID, according to the [CDC,](https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/covid19/pulse/long-covid.htm) and among U.S. adults ever infected, 27% have reported long COVID. Long COVID has been [defined](https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/long-term-effects/index.html) by the CDC as symptoms such as fatigue, brain fog, and cough that persist longer than 4 weeks and by the [World Health Organization](https://www.who.int/europe/news-room/fact-sheets/item/post-covid-19-condition) as symptoms persisting for 3 months or more. Here’s a roundup of what the research shows about mental health and long COVID risk — along with other research finding that paying attention to health habits may reduce that risk. #### Pre-Existing Depression, Anxiety, and Long COVID Risk A history of mental health issues — including depression, anxiety, worry, perceived stress, and loneliness — raises the risk of long COVID if infection occurs, Harvard researchers have found. The researchers evaluated data from three large, ongoing studies including nearly 55,000 participants to determine the effects of high levels of psychological distress before a COVID infection. “Our study was purely survey based,” said Siwen Wang, MD, the study’s lead author and a research fellow at Harvard’s T.H. Chan School of Public Health at Harvard University. At the start of the survey in April 2020, none of the participants reported a current or previous COVID infection. They answered surveys about psychological distress at the start of the study, at 6 monthly time points, then quarterly until November 2021. Over the follow up, 3,193 people reported a positive COVID test and 43% of those, or 1,403, developed long COVID. That number may seem high, but 38% of the 55,000 were active health care workers. On the final questionnaire, they reported whether their symptoms persisted for 4 weeks or longer and thus had long COVID by the standard CDC definition. Wang’s team then looked at the infected participants’ psychological status. Anxiety raised the risk of long COVID by 42%, depression by 32%, worry about COVID by 37%, perceived stress, 46%, and loneliness, 32%. COVID patients with a history of depression or anxiety are also more likely than others to report trouble with cognition in the weeks after a COVID infection and to develop brain fog and long COVID, [UCLA researchers found.](https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamanetworkopen/fullarticle/2804555) They evaluated 766 people with a confirmed COVID infection; 36% said their thinking was affected within 4 weeks of the infection. Those with anxiety and depression were more likely to report those difficulties. #### Long COVID, Then Anxiety, Depression, Brain Changes Even mild cases of COVID infection can lead to long COVID and brain changes in those who suffer anxiety or depression after the infection, according to Clarissa Yasuda, MD, PhD, assistant professor of neurology at the University of Campinas in Sao Paulo, Brazil. She has researched long COVID’s effects on the brain, even as she is coping with being a long COVID patient. In one of her studies, presented at the 2023 American Academy of Neurology meeting in April, she found brain changes in people with anxiety, depression, and COVID but not in those infected who did not have either mental health issue. She evaluated 254 people, median age 41, after about 82 days from their positive PCR test for COVID. Everyone completed a standard questionnaire for depression (the Beck Depression Inventory) and another for anxiety (the Beck Anxiety Inventory). She further divided them into two groups — the 102 with symptoms and the 152 who had no symptoms of either depression or anxiety. Brain scans showed those with COVID who also had anxiety and depression had shrinkage in the limbic area of the brain (which helps process emotion and memory), while those infected who didn’t have anxiety or depression did not. The researchers then scanned the brains of 148 healthy people without COVID and found no shrinkage. The atrophy, Yasuda said, “is not something you can see with your eyes. It was only detected with computer analysis. Visualization on an MRI is normal.” The number of people in this study with mental health issues was surprisingly high, Yasuda said. “It was intriguing for us that we noticed many individuals have both symptoms, anxiety and depression. We were not expecting it at that proportion.” The researchers found a pattern of change not only in brain structure but in brain communication. They found those changes by using specialized software to analyze brain networks in some of the participants. Those with anxiety and depression had widespread functional changes in each of 12 networks tested. The participants without mental health symptoms showed changes in just 5 networks. These changes are enough to lead to problems with thinking skills and memory, Yasuda said. #### Explaining the Links Several ideas have been proposed to explain the link between psychological distress and long COVID risk, Wang said. “The first and most mainstream mechanism for long COVID is chronic inflammation and immune dysregulation,” she said. “Several mental health conditions, such as anxiety and depression, are associated with inflammation and dysfunction and that might be the link between depression, anxiety, and long COVID.” Another less mainstream hypothesis, she said, is that “those with long COVID have more autoantibodies and they are more likely to have blood clotting issues. These have also been found in people with anxiety, depression, or other psychological distress.” Other researchers are looking more broadly at how COVID infections affect the brain. When German researchers evaluated the brain and other body parts of 20 patients who died from non-COVID causes but had documented COVID infections, they found that 12 had [accumulations](https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2023.04.04.535604v1) of the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein in the brain tissue as well as the skull and meninges, the membranes that line the skull and spinal cord. Healthy controls did not. The findings suggest the persistence of the spike protein may contribute to the long-term neurological symptoms of long COVID and may also lead to understanding of the molecular mechanisms as well as therapies for long COVID, the researchers said in their preprint report, which has not yet been peer-reviewed. In another recent [study,](https://www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/pnas.2217232120) researchers from Hamburg, Germany, performed neuroimaging and neuropsychological assessments of 223 people who were not vaccinated and recovered from mild to moderate COVID infections, comparing them to 223 matched healthy controls who had the same testing. In those infected, they found alterations in the cerebral white matter but no worse cognitive function in the first year after recovering. They conclude that the infection triggers a prolonged neuroinflammatory response. Can the brain changes reverse? “We don’t have an answer right now, but we are working on that,” Yasuda said. For now, she speculates about the return of brain volume: “I think for most it will. But I think we need to treat the symptoms. We can’t disregard the symptoms of long COVID. People are suffering a lot, and this suffering is causing some brain damage.” #### Lifestyle Habits and Risk of Long COVID Meanwhile, [healthy lifestyle habits](https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamainternalmedicine/fullarticle/2800885) in those infected can reduce the risk of long COVID, research by Wang and her colleagues found. They followed nearly 2,000 women with a positive COVID test over 19 months. Of these, 44%, or 871, developed long COVID. Compared with women who followed none of the healthy lifestyle habits evaluated, those with five to six of the habits had a 49% lower risk of long COVID. The habits included: a healthy BMI (18.5 to 24.9), never smoking, at least 150 minutes weekly of moderate to vigorous physical activity, moderate alcohol intake (5-15 grams a day), high diet quality, and good sleep (7-9 hours nightly). #### Long-Term Solutions Yasuda hopes that mental health care — of those infected and those not — will be taken more seriously. In her [commentary](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9387179/) on her own long COVID experience, she wrote, in part: “I fear for the numerous survivors of COVID-19 who do not have access to medical attention for their post-COVID symptoms. … The mental health system needs to become prepared to receive survivors with different neuropsychiatric symptoms, including anxiety and depression.” By Kathleen Doheny #### Sources Clarissa Yasuda, MD, PhD, assistant professor of neurology at the University of Campinas, Sao Paulo, Brazil. Siwen Wang, MD, research fellow, T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Harvard University, Boston. JAMA Psychiatry: Associations of Depression, Anxiety, Worry, Perceived Stress, and Loneliness Prior to Infection With Risk of Post-COVID-19 Conditions.” American Academy of Neurology 2023 Annual Meeting, April 22-27: “Anxiety and Depression Are Associated with Limbic Atrophy and Severe Disruption Of Brain Functional Connectivity After Mild COVID-19 Infection.” CDC: “Long COVID or Post-COVID Conditions,” “Fast Stats: Mental Health.” bioRxiv: “SARS-CoV-2 Spike Protein Accumulation in the Skull-Meninges-Brain Axis: Potential Implications for Long-Term Neurological Complications in post-COVID-19.” PNAS: “Brain imaging and neuropsychological assessment of individuals recovered from a mild to moderate SARS-CoV-2 infection.” JAMA Internal Medicine: “Adherence to Healthy Lifestyle Prior to Infection and Risk of Post-COVID-19 Condition.” JAMA Network Open: “Perceived Cognitive Deficits in Patients With Symptomatic SARS-CoV-2 and Their Association with Post-COVID-19 Condition.” Gallup: “U.S. Depression Rates Reach New Highs.” Arquivos de Neuro-Psiquiatria: “My journey after a mild infection with COVID-19: I want my old brain back.” Source : [Medscape](https://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/992719#vp_1) ## Related HIV and Co-Infections News [See all related HIV and Co-Infections News](https://www.eatg.org/hiv-co-infections-news/?hivnews_cat=covid-19 "See all related HIV and Co-Infections News") - [April 15, 2026 Healio: Q\&A: Lessons in long COVID management](https://www.eatg.org/hiv-news/healio-qa-lessons-in-long-covid-management/) - [April 3, 2026 Healio: Maternal COVID-19 vaccination protects infants for up to 6 months](https://www.eatg.org/hiv-news/healio-maternal-covid-19-vaccination-protects-infants-for-up-to-6-months/) - [March 1, 2026 EMA: First combined COVID-19 and influenza vaccine for people 50 years and older](https://www.eatg.org/hiv-news/ema-first-combined-covid-19-and-influenza-vaccine-for-people-50-years-and-older/) ### Get involved Are you living with HIV/AIDS? Are you part of a community affected by HIV/AIDS and co-infections? Do you work or volunteer in the field? Are you motivated by our cause and interested to support our work? - [Become a member](https://www.eatg.org/become-a-member/) - [Support us](https://www.eatg.org/support-us/) ### Subscribe Stay in the loop and get all the important EATG updates in your inbox with the EATG newsletter. The HIV & co-infections bulletin is your source of handpicked news from the field arriving regularly to your inbox. - [EATG Newsletter](http://eepurl.com/duRu4D) - [HIV\&Co-infections Bulletin](http://eepurl.com/b582Sn) - [Home](https://www.eatg.org/) - [About us](https://www.eatg.org/about-us/) - [What we do](https://www.eatg.org/what-we-do/) - [Resources](https://www.eatg.org/resources/) - [Latest](https://www.eatg.org/latest/) - [Contact](https://www.eatg.org/contact/) EATG Interoffices \\| Avenue des Arts 56-4c 1000 Brussels Belgium - Phone: [\+32 2 626 96 40](tel:003226269640 "Call EATG") - Mail: © 2026 European AIDS Treatment Group - [Legal notice](https://www.eatg.org/legal-notice/) - [Privacy Policy](https://www.eatg.org/privacy-policy/) - [Cookie policy](https://www.eatg.org/cookie-policy/) - [Glossary](https://www.eatg.org/glossary/) [Noomia, Web agency](https://noomia.be/) This website uses cookies. Some cookies are necessary for the proper functioning of the website and can not be refused if you want to visit this website. Other cookies are used for social network sharing, video playback and analysis purposes. You can refuse them if you want. [Read our cookie policy](https://www.eatg.org/cookie-policy/) Accept Refuse non-functional cookies
Readable Markdown	Anxiety, depression, and COVID-19 can be a bad combination for your brain — and your long-term health. Having anxiety and depression before a COVID infection increases the risk of developing long COVID, [researchers have found.](https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamapsychiatry/fullarticle/2796097) Those with long COVID who develop anxiety and depression after an infection may have [brain shrinkage](https://aanfiles.blob.core.windows.net/aanfiles/d6ad7486-84cc-4d08-9bf3-e3b7c9825d8f/EMBARGOED%202023%20AAN%20AM%20Abstract%20%231998%20-%20Anxiety%20and%20Depression%20Are%20Associated%20with%20Limbic%20Atrophy%20and%20Severe%20Disruption%20Of%20Brain%20Functional%20Connectivity....pdf) in areas that regulate memory, emotion, and other functions as well as disruption of brain connectivity. While many questions remain about these intertwined relationships, the associations aren’t a complete surprise. Experts already know that depression and anxiety are associated with inflammation and immune dysfunction, perhaps helping to explain the link between these mental health conditions, the risk of long COVID, and the changes in the brain. Brain changes accompanying a COVID infection have concerned researchers since earlier in the pandemic, when U.K. Biobank researchers [found](https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-022-04569-5) brain atrophy, loss of grey matter, and decline in cognition in those infected with COVID compared with those not infected. #### Common Conditions The ramifications of the research linking anxiety, depression and long COVID are far-reaching. According to the [CDC,](https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/fastats/mental-health.htm) 12.5% of U.S. adults have regular feelings of anxiety (as well as nervousness and worry), and the latest [Gallup Poll](https://news.gallup.com/poll/505745/depression-rates-reach-new-highs.aspx) found that nearly 18% of adults currently have or are being treated for depression. As of May 8, 10% of U.S. infected adults have long COVID, according to the [CDC,](https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/covid19/pulse/long-covid.htm) and among U.S. adults ever infected, 27% have reported long COVID. Long COVID has been [defined](https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/long-term-effects/index.html) by the CDC as symptoms such as fatigue, brain fog, and cough that persist longer than 4 weeks and by the [World Health Organization](https://www.who.int/europe/news-room/fact-sheets/item/post-covid-19-condition) as symptoms persisting for 3 months or more. Here’s a roundup of what the research shows about mental health and long COVID risk — along with other research finding that paying attention to health habits may reduce that risk. #### Pre-Existing Depression, Anxiety, and Long COVID Risk A history of mental health issues — including depression, anxiety, worry, perceived stress, and loneliness — raises the risk of long COVID if infection occurs, Harvard researchers have found. The researchers evaluated data from three large, ongoing studies including nearly 55,000 participants to determine the effects of high levels of psychological distress before a COVID infection. “Our study was purely survey based,” said Siwen Wang, MD, the study’s lead author and a research fellow at Harvard’s T.H. Chan School of Public Health at Harvard University. At the start of the survey in April 2020, none of the participants reported a current or previous COVID infection. They answered surveys about psychological distress at the start of the study, at 6 monthly time points, then quarterly until November 2021. Over the follow up, 3,193 people reported a positive COVID test and 43% of those, or 1,403, developed long COVID. That number may seem high, but 38% of the 55,000 were active health care workers. On the final questionnaire, they reported whether their symptoms persisted for 4 weeks or longer and thus had long COVID by the standard CDC definition. Wang’s team then looked at the infected participants’ psychological status. Anxiety raised the risk of long COVID by 42%, depression by 32%, worry about COVID by 37%, perceived stress, 46%, and loneliness, 32%. COVID patients with a history of depression or anxiety are also more likely than others to report trouble with cognition in the weeks after a COVID infection and to develop brain fog and long COVID, [UCLA researchers found.](https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamanetworkopen/fullarticle/2804555) They evaluated 766 people with a confirmed COVID infection; 36% said their thinking was affected within 4 weeks of the infection. Those with anxiety and depression were more likely to report those difficulties. #### Long COVID, Then Anxiety, Depression, Brain Changes Even mild cases of COVID infection can lead to long COVID and brain changes in those who suffer anxiety or depression after the infection, according to Clarissa Yasuda, MD, PhD, assistant professor of neurology at the University of Campinas in Sao Paulo, Brazil. She has researched long COVID’s effects on the brain, even as she is coping with being a long COVID patient. In one of her studies, presented at the 2023 American Academy of Neurology meeting in April, she found brain changes in people with anxiety, depression, and COVID but not in those infected who did not have either mental health issue. She evaluated 254 people, median age 41, after about 82 days from their positive PCR test for COVID. Everyone completed a standard questionnaire for depression (the Beck Depression Inventory) and another for anxiety (the Beck Anxiety Inventory). She further divided them into two groups — the 102 with symptoms and the 152 who had no symptoms of either depression or anxiety. Brain scans showed those with COVID who also had anxiety and depression had shrinkage in the limbic area of the brain (which helps process emotion and memory), while those infected who didn’t have anxiety or depression did not. The researchers then scanned the brains of 148 healthy people without COVID and found no shrinkage. The atrophy, Yasuda said, “is not something you can see with your eyes. It was only detected with computer analysis. Visualization on an MRI is normal.” The number of people in this study with mental health issues was surprisingly high, Yasuda said. “It was intriguing for us that we noticed many individuals have both symptoms, anxiety and depression. We were not expecting it at that proportion.” The researchers found a pattern of change not only in brain structure but in brain communication. They found those changes by using specialized software to analyze brain networks in some of the participants. Those with anxiety and depression had widespread functional changes in each of 12 networks tested. The participants without mental health symptoms showed changes in just 5 networks. These changes are enough to lead to problems with thinking skills and memory, Yasuda said. #### Explaining the Links Several ideas have been proposed to explain the link between psychological distress and long COVID risk, Wang said. “The first and most mainstream mechanism for long COVID is chronic inflammation and immune dysregulation,” she said. “Several mental health conditions, such as anxiety and depression, are associated with inflammation and dysfunction and that might be the link between depression, anxiety, and long COVID.” Another less mainstream hypothesis, she said, is that “those with long COVID have more autoantibodies and they are more likely to have blood clotting issues. These have also been found in people with anxiety, depression, or other psychological distress.” Other researchers are looking more broadly at how COVID infections affect the brain. When German researchers evaluated the brain and other body parts of 20 patients who died from non-COVID causes but had documented COVID infections, they found that 12 had [accumulations](https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2023.04.04.535604v1) of the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein in the brain tissue as well as the skull and meninges, the membranes that line the skull and spinal cord. Healthy controls did not. The findings suggest the persistence of the spike protein may contribute to the long-term neurological symptoms of long COVID and may also lead to understanding of the molecular mechanisms as well as therapies for long COVID, the researchers said in their preprint report, which has not yet been peer-reviewed. In another recent [study,](https://www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/pnas.2217232120) researchers from Hamburg, Germany, performed neuroimaging and neuropsychological assessments of 223 people who were not vaccinated and recovered from mild to moderate COVID infections, comparing them to 223 matched healthy controls who had the same testing. In those infected, they found alterations in the cerebral white matter but no worse cognitive function in the first year after recovering. They conclude that the infection triggers a prolonged neuroinflammatory response. Can the brain changes reverse? “We don’t have an answer right now, but we are working on that,” Yasuda said. For now, she speculates about the return of brain volume: “I think for most it will. But I think we need to treat the symptoms. We can’t disregard the symptoms of long COVID. People are suffering a lot, and this suffering is causing some brain damage.” #### Lifestyle Habits and Risk of Long COVID Meanwhile, [healthy lifestyle habits](https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamainternalmedicine/fullarticle/2800885) in those infected can reduce the risk of long COVID, research by Wang and her colleagues found. They followed nearly 2,000 women with a positive COVID test over 19 months. Of these, 44%, or 871, developed long COVID. Compared with women who followed none of the healthy lifestyle habits evaluated, those with five to six of the habits had a 49% lower risk of long COVID. The habits included: a healthy BMI (18.5 to 24.9), never smoking, at least 150 minutes weekly of moderate to vigorous physical activity, moderate alcohol intake (5-15 grams a day), high diet quality, and good sleep (7-9 hours nightly). #### Long-Term Solutions Yasuda hopes that mental health care — of those infected and those not — will be taken more seriously. In her [commentary](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9387179/) on her own long COVID experience, she wrote, in part: “I fear for the numerous survivors of COVID-19 who do not have access to medical attention for their post-COVID symptoms. … The mental health system needs to become prepared to receive survivors with different neuropsychiatric symptoms, including anxiety and depression.” By Kathleen Doheny #### Sources Clarissa Yasuda, MD, PhD, assistant professor of neurology at the University of Campinas, Sao Paulo, Brazil. Siwen Wang, MD, research fellow, T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Harvard University, Boston. JAMA Psychiatry: Associations of Depression, Anxiety, Worry, Perceived Stress, and Loneliness Prior to Infection With Risk of Post-COVID-19 Conditions.” American Academy of Neurology 2023 Annual Meeting, April 22-27: “Anxiety and Depression Are Associated with Limbic Atrophy and Severe Disruption Of Brain Functional Connectivity After Mild COVID-19 Infection.” CDC: “Long COVID or Post-COVID Conditions,” “Fast Stats: Mental Health.” bioRxiv: “SARS-CoV-2 Spike Protein Accumulation in the Skull-Meninges-Brain Axis: Potential Implications for Long-Term Neurological Complications in post-COVID-19.” PNAS: “Brain imaging and neuropsychological assessment of individuals recovered from a mild to moderate SARS-CoV-2 infection.” JAMA Internal Medicine: “Adherence to Healthy Lifestyle Prior to Infection and Risk of Post-COVID-19 Condition.” JAMA Network Open: “Perceived Cognitive Deficits in Patients With Symptomatic SARS-CoV-2 and Their Association with Post-COVID-19 Condition.” Gallup: “U.S. Depression Rates Reach New Highs.” Arquivos de Neuro-Psiquiatria: “My journey after a mild infection with COVID-19: I want my old brain back.”
ML Classification
ML Categories	null
ML Page Types	null
ML Intent Types	null
Content Metadata
Language	en-us
Author	null
Publish Time	not set
Original Publish Time	2023-06-05 23:59:48 (2 years ago)
Republished	No
Word Count (Total)	2,147
Word Count (Content)	1,699
Links
External Links	27
Internal Links	49
Technical SEO
Meta Nofollow	No
Meta Noarchive	No
JS Rendered	No
Redirect Target	null
Performance
Download Time (ms)	1,043
TTFB (ms)	1,023
Download Size (bytes)	16,406
Shard	31 (laksa)
Root Hash	16510872311708999431
Unparsed URL	org,eatg!www,/hiv-news/anxiety-your-brain-and-long-covid-what-the-research-says/ s443