Yahoo News: Covid-19 may be affecting your central nervous system causing depression and anxiety
UC expert says Covid-19 may be attacking the brain
Depressed mood or anxiety exhibited in Covid-19 patients may possibly be a sign the virus affects the central nervous system, according to a new study from a University of Cincinnati College of Medicine researcher and reported by Yahoo News.
The findings, published in the journal The Laryngoscope, revealed that these two psychological symptoms were most closely associated with a loss of smell and taste rather than the more severe indicators of the novel coronavirus such as shortness of breath, cough or fever.
"These symptoms of psychological distress, such as depressed mood and anxiety are central nervous system symptoms if they are associated only with how diminished is your sense of smell," says Ahmed Sedaghat, MD, PhD, an associate professor and director of rhinology, allergy and anterior skull base surgery, in the UC College of Medicine’s Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery.
"This may indicate that the virus is infecting olfactory neurons, decreasing the sense of smell, and then using the olfactory tract to enter the central nervous symptom," he noted.
Read the Yahoo interview online.
Several other local, national and international media also reported Dr. Sedaghat's work findings including:
Impact Lives Here
The University of Cincinnati is leading public urban universities into a new era of innovation and impact. Our faculty, staff and students are saving lives, changing outcomes and bending the future in our city's direction, Next Lives Here.
Stay up on all UC's COVID-19 stories, read more #UCtheGood content, or take a UC virtual visit and begin picturing yourself at an institution that inspires incredible stories.
Related Stories
The future of innovation in American steel
December 8, 2025
The BBC podcast, “Business Daily,” recently visited Middletown, Ohio to address the state of steel manufacturing. According to the BBC, Middletown Works, a Cleveland-Cliffs owned facility, cancelled plans for converting to a hydrogen-powered facility after the government withdrew its funding for the project.
UC herbarium research offers peek at past
December 8, 2025
WVXU profiled UC's Margaret H. Fulford Herbarium, which features plant specimens from around the world.
Project brings Cincinnati’s environmental stories to the stage
December 8, 2025
A UC-led collaboration is helping Cincinnati SCPA students explore environmental history through performance, using real stories of residents engaged in Mill Creek restoration, community gardening and other hands-on efforts.