Top US experts Dr Anthony Fauci and Dr Walter Koroshetz provided insights into the neurological impact of COVID-19 and the outlook for future care, in a special “Hot Topics” session at AAN 2021.
Leaders of the AAN’s scientific committee asked Dr Fauci, Director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases and Chief Medical Advisor to the US President, and Dr Koroshetz, Director of the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, to update neurologists on COVID-19.
In response to a question about the wide variation in response to SARS-CoV-2 infection – why some people remain asymptomatic, and others die, and why small children seem to be relatively protected – Dr Fauci responded: “It is one of the most puzzling aspects of this disease. You can make some guesses. Is it the density of ACE2 receptors in the nasopharynx and the lung, is it underlying pre-existing immunity related to prior coronavirus infections such as the common cold?