Flu Raises Risk Of Neurological Disorders More Than COVID-19: Study

An influenza infection is more likely to increase the risk of having neurological disorders in the next year versus COVID-19, a recent study revealed.

In an American Academy of Neurology-funded study, researchers evaluated people who were hospitalized with either influenza or COVID-19 and found that those infected with flu were more likely to need hospital care in the following year for common neurologic conditions than people who had the SARS-CoV2 infection. However, the study did not look specifically at outcomes associated with long COVID.

The study included 77,272 individuals hospitalized with COVID-19 and an equal number hospitalized with influenza. Researchers then examined how many of these individuals sought medical attention within the next year for six common neurological disorders: migraine, epilepsy, stroke, neuropathy, movement disorders, and dementia.

In general, people who had a COVID-19 infection were found to have fewer cases of common neurologic conditions in comparison to those with influenza infection. These are the comparative results:

• Migraine: 2.0% of COVID patients vs. 3.2% of influenza patients
• Epilepsy: 1.6% of COVID patients vs. 2.1% of influenza patients
• Neuropathy: 1.9% of COVID patients vs. 3.6% of influenza patients
• Movement disorders: 1.5% of COVID patients vs. 2.5% of influenza patients
• Stroke: 2.0% of COVID patients vs. 2.4% of influenza patients
• Dementia: 2.0% of COVID patients vs. 2.3% of influenza patients

After adjusting for factors such as age, sex, and other health conditions, having a COVID infection was linked to a 35% lower risk of receiving care for migraine, a 22% lower risk of receiving care for epilepsy, and a 44% lower risk of receiving care for neuropathy when compared to the flu. Additionally, those who had COVID had a 36% reduced risk of seeking care for movement disorders, a 10% lower risk for stroke, and a 7% lower risk for dementia.

“Since COVID-19 has now infected the majority of adults in the US, it’s good news that…