, joined the MJH Life Sciences team in November 2020. He graduated from William Paterson University with a degree in liberal studies, and concentrations in history and psychology. He enjoys film, reading, and pretending he is a good cook. Follow him on Twitter 

Killian Meara

Recent studies conducted by investigators from the Alzheimer’s Association, in collaboration with investigators from nearly 40 other countries, has found that many individuals who were infected with 

 experienceneuropsychiatric symptoms and for some, these symptoms persist for a long-term period.

Findings from the studies were presented at the 

Alzheimer’s Association International Conference 2021.

"We're starting to see clear connections between COVID-19 and problems with cognition months after infection," Gabriel de Erausquin, an author on the study said. "It's imperative we continue to study this population, and others around the world, for a longer period of time to further understand the long-term neurological impacts of COVID-19."

For one of the studies the team of investigators collected plasma samples from 310 patients who were admitted to a hospital with a confirmed case of COVD-19 to look for the presence of biomarkers that are indicators of injury in the brain, neuroinflammation and Alzheimer’s disease.

Findings showed that the most common neurological symptom in those patients was confusion due to toxic-metabolic encephalopathy (TME).

Another study looked at cognition and olfactory senses in nearly 300 older adults in Argentina who were infected with COVID-19 between 3 and 6 months after they recovered.

Finds from that study showed that more than half of the patients had persistent problems with forgetfulness. Additionally, 1 in 4 had issues with cognition, including language and executive dysfunction.

"These new data point to disturbing trends showing COVID-19 infections leading to lasting cognitive impairment and even Alzheimer's symptoms," Heather M. Snyder, the Alzheimer's Association’s vice president of medical and scientific relations said. "With more than 190 million cases and nearly 4 million deaths worldwide, COVID-19 has devastated the entire world. It is imperative that we continue to study what this virus is doing to our bodies and brains. The Alzheimer's Association and its partners are leading, but more research is needed."

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More and more evidence is pointing towards persistent neuropsychiatric symptoms in people who had the disease.

Long-Term Cognitive Dysfunction Linked With COVID-19

On Friday, the United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention 

 documenting COVID-19 breakthrough infections that were associated with large public gatherings in Barnstable County, Massachusetts.

 during July that were linked with multiple summer events.

During this time, vaccination coverage among eligible residents of the state was at 69%, one of the highest rates in the country.

Among the 469 documented cases, 346 (74%) occurred in fully vaccinated individuals. Genomic sequencing of specimens from 133 of those cases demonstrated that 119 (89%) of them were found to be the Delta variant.

Symptomatic cases were seen in 274 (79%) of the vaccinated individuals and 4 ended up needing to be hospitalized.

The study also found that vaccinated individuals carried as much virus in their noses as those who are unvaccinated.

These findings show just how highly transmissible the Delta variant of the SARS-CoV-2 virus really is. The CDC stated that it is crucial to understand the determinants of transmission in order to develop prevention strategies.

The data reported in the study is what led to the CDC recently reversing course and again recommending that vaccinated individuals begin wearing masks in areas where there is a high transmission rate of COVID-19.

“This finding is concerning and was a pivotal discovery leading to CDC’s updated mask recommendation,” Rochelle Walensky, director of the CDC said in a statement. “The masking recommendation was updated to ensure the vaccinated public would not unknowingly transmit virus to others, including their unvaccinated or immunocompromised loved ones.”

The study found that ¾ of the cases occurred in fully vaccinated individuals.

CDC Report Shows Significant Breakthrough Cases in Massachusetts

A recent study conducted by investigators from the CUNY Institute for Implementation Science in Population Health, in collaboration with the CUNY Graduate School of Public Health and Health Policy, has found that over half of US parents said they may not vaccinate their children who are 12 years of age or younger.

Results from the study were published in the journal 

“Preventing COVID-19 in children is of critical importance not only for the individual health benefits but also because it will contribute to stopping the spread of infections in communities and households,” the authors wrote. “High coverage of COVID-19 vaccination among children will help stop transmission and will allow for safe return to normal activities, including fully opening schools.”

For the study, the team of investigators conducted an online, community-based survey among 2,074 parents in the United States and 1,119 in New York City who had children under the age of 12 years old.

The study was conducted between March and April of 2021 and asked parents if they would vaccinate their child for 

 once approved for their age group, and if not, why they didn’t want their child to receive the vaccine.

Findings from the study showed that only 49% of the study participants said that they planned on vaccinating their children under 12, while 26% said they were unsure and 25% said they will not vaccinate their child when the vaccines are approved for them.

Additionally, the study found that parents who did not have a college education and made less than $25,000 a year were most likely to be vaccine hesitant. It was also seen that Asian parents were the mostly likely to say that they will vaccinate their children.

“The results of our survey, suggesting that as many as half of U.S. parents do not want to vaccinate their children for Covid-19, are concerning, but we can use this information while we await pediatric vaccine approval to work on improving future uptake,” Chloe Teasdale, lead investigator on the study said. “We should start now to develop and deliver information campaigns to help parents understand the safety and effectiveness of vaccines, as well as the real dangers to children from Covid-19 infection.”

Reasons given for not vaccinating were safety issues and low risk for infection.

Over Half of Parents May not Vaccinate Children for COVID-19

Recently, over 50 major healthcare organizations 

 that called for all healthcare employers, from hospitals to long-term care facilities, to require a COVID-19 vaccine for their employees.

The authors and signatories of that statement cited their reasoning as the protection and safety of not only the healthcare workers themselves, but that of their patients and residents as well.

The healthcare sector, the authors stated, should be a leader when it comes to being vaccinated against 

However, by the end of May, 1 in 4 healthcare employees still didn’t receive a shot, proving there is still a considerable amount of hesitancy in that population.

When it comes to information about vaccines, there is hardly a more knowledge group of individuals than pharmacists. Not only do they know about the medicine itself, but they must be familiar with the entire approval process that a therapy goes through.

So, what role do they play in vaccine advocacy?

Anna Legreid Dopp, Pharm. D, senior director of clinical guidelines and quality improvement at the American Society of Health-System Pharmacists, discussed this topic in a recent interview with 

“As a trusted voice in the community, pharmacists are one of the most accessible healthcare providers,” Dopp said. “They can manage care concerns, they can triage care concerns and having those one on one conversations knowing that the pharmacists understand it, I think they should be leveraged to have those crucial conversations.”

In the interview, Dr. Dopp also discusses the varying reasons why there is still vaccine hesitancy in the healthcare worker population and how pharmacists can use their voice to be champions of vaccination.

A conversation with Anna Legreid Dopp, Pharm. D.