Volume 47, Issue 4 December 2023 JVU 474-172 | Cerebral Vasomotor Reactivity Testing in the Middle Cerebral Artery Using Transcranial Doppler to Assess Brain Dysregulation in Long-Haul COVID Patients-474-172

474-172

Pdf Summary

A study published in the Journal for Vascular Ultrasound investigated cerebral vasomotor reactivity (CVR) in individuals with long-haul COVID-19 (LHC) using transcranial Doppler (TCD). The researchers aimed to assess the dysregulation of cerebral blood flow in LHC patients. The study included 26 participants, with 10 individuals experiencing LHC symptoms and 16 controls. TCD was performed during different stages of a protocol, including baseline, stimulus (breathing carbogen gas), and hypercapnic phases. The results showed no significant difference in CVR between symptomatic and asymptomatic individuals. However, when controlling for confounders such as age, weight, gender, and smoking history, the study found a significant increase in CVR among symptomatic individuals compared to controls. Other factors such as the number and severity of COVID-19 symptoms were also associated with changes in CVR. The study concluded that TCD could be an effective bedside test for assessing CVR in LHC patients, and further research with larger sample sizes is needed to better understand the role of CVR in identifying high-risk populations for cerebrovascular anomalies associated with COVID-19.

Keywords

cerebral vasomotor reactivity

long-haul COVID-19

transcranial Doppler

cerebral blood flow

symptomatic individuals

asymptomatic individuals

confounders

COVID-19 symptoms

bedside test

high-risk populations