Scientists have identified a new side effect of long-term COVID-19 - "facial blindness"
Miscellaneous / / April 03, 2023
Have you had such a situation that you didn’t recognize relatives or acquaintances after the coronavirus?
New study scientists from Dartmouth College in the USA showed that another side effect of long-term COVID-19 there may be prosopagnosia, which is also called facial blindness. It is the loss of the ability to recognize people.
Coronavirus is known to have many side effects, including impaired attention, memory and speech, as well as loss of smell And taste. But prosopagnosia has not been mentioned before.
In the new work, scientists first described such a case in 28-year-old Annie. The girl worked as a portrait painter, but after COVID-19 she stopped recognizing faces, including relatives. When she first met her parents after her illness, she passed them by. It was possible to recognize relatives only by voice. The girl also complained about the deterioration of navigational abilities.
According to the authors of the study, such abnormalities are usually observed after brain injuries or developmental disorders. But Annie had never experienced anything like it.
To make sure that the patient really had prosopagnosia, scientists conducted a series of tests, during which she was shown photos of celebrities and strangers. Indeed, the girl had difficulty recognizing familiar faces and recognizing strangers.
Scientists believe that this is due to the long-term coronavirus. Therefore, we studied the data of another 54 people who had symptoms of COVID-19 for 12 weeks or more. Many of them also showed cognitive problems, including difficulty recognizing the faces of family members.
Thus, the authors of the study conclude that although the sample is small, facial blindness may be a common consequence of the disease.
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