We might never have considered this item for publication, were it not for Psy Post’s source of information. That source is a study in EClinical Medicine posted by The Lancet Magazine. Now that peer-reviewed journal has been a leading source of medical information since 1823. Therefore, when a Lancet study links COVID to lower IQ scores it has an extra weight of credibility.
By Coincidence, The Data Fell Into the Researcher’s Lap
Lead researcher Adam Hampshire is an associate professor in the Computational, Cognitive and Clinical Neuroimaging Laboratory at Imperial College London. ‘By coincidence,’ he explained to Psy Post. ‘The pandemic escalated in the United Kingdom while I was collecting cognitive and mental health data at very large scale.
‘The test I was using comprised a set of tasks designed to measure different dimensions of cognitive ability.’ However, his curiosity rose when a number of colleagues suggested he extend his study to include the effect of COVID-19. And particularly if it was affecting mental health and reasoning.
How the Lancet Study Linked COVID to Lower IQ Scores
Adam Hampshire and his colleagues examined the data and discovered the following:
1… People who recovered from COVID-19 displayed significant cognitive defects, compared to those who did have the disease.
2… These mental effects applied whether or not they were still exhibiting symptoms. Moreover, the comparison was neutral for a wide range of factors.
3… Those factors included age, gender, education level, income, racial-ethnic group, pre-existing medical disorders, tiredness, depression and anxiety.
4… But the effect was greatest for tasks requiring reasoning, planning and problem solving. And there’s an echo of Long COVID in those findings too.
These strong links to COVID in the Lancet study are a tantalizing snapshot. However, we don’t know whether the effect on cognition is short-lived, medium term, or might even sustain longer.
Related
Why Your Friend May Not Want the Vaccine
Before It Becomes Too Late for Vaccination
Preview Image: Wechsler Intelligence Quotient Model
