Can COVID-19 Cause Parkinson’s Disease Years Later?

Preliminary studies have suggested that severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), which is the etiologic agent of COVID-19, may have potential neurotropism in humans, although this feature has not yet been conclusively demonstrated. (one). Like other respiratory viruses, SARS-CoV-2 can reach the central nervous system (CNS) through the blood or peripheral nerves, such as the nerve endings of the olfactory epithelium of the nasal passages [1-3]. The hypothesis of the olfactory pathway for SARSCoV-2 neuro invasion is supported by the fact that several patients with COVID-19 infection have experienced decreased or total loss of smell (hyposmia/anosmia) and altered taste or dysgeusia. The exciting aspect of this route (from the nasal cavity to the olfactory bulb, then to the cerebral cortex and finally to the brain stem) is the possible presence of the virus in the brain stem, which contains the nuclei of neurons responsible for respiration control. In fact, more than half of the patients with COVID-19 infection show respiratory distress [4].