
WesElyMD
@WesElyMD
Followers
58K
Following
285K
Media
3K
Statuses
19K
Husband & Dad. ICU Doc. Vanderbilt. @CIBScenter studies Covid & Long Covid, ICU Survivorship, PICS, Dementia, Delirium. Tweets my own. Still learning.
Joined April 2020
1/🧵 Beauty in simplicity. For too long in life, I thought success was about climbing in the 🌎’s eyes…higher, better, farther. My physician wife & I are “new parents” to my 58 y/o brother w #DownSyndrome & he’s giving me all kinds of new understanding of what matters. #COVID
277
891
11K
1/🧵 Let’s talk Long COVID:. I’m grouping several important & interesting articles about the reality of #LongCOVID. By studying brain fluid, viral persistence & MRIs, we’re building our understanding of the “how” & “why” of this devastating malady. A train is coming, read on…
221
5K
10K
1/🧵 Imagine 2 people, madly in love & married 28 years, in an impossible situation, both lives on the line & separated by different hospitals. Then imagine 2 sets of #nurses & #doctors separately determined to overcome ⛰ of obstacles….(shared w perm). #MedTwitter #NurseTwitter
125
1K
7K
1/🧵 Long COVID Brain Science: 🧠. For ~100M suffering 🌎, let’s use data to combat myths & #Misinformation. COVID is biologically dangerous long after virus is gone. #LongCOVID affects our…. 📍Olfactory & Limbic Systems.📍 Interferon Autoimmunity.📍PET scans.📍Astrocytes. How?
158
3K
6K
1/🧵Your brain “on COVID”🧠 . Let’s integrate >20 studies on #LongCOVID neuropathology. My 24 y/o patient explained: “I don’t have a future because I can’t think anymore.”. Let’s talk:.Autopsy Studies.Viral persistence.Brain Size & Disability.Recovery & Hope. H/T pic 👁️ tw 13
165
2K
4K
1/🧵 What is #LongCOVID⁉️. A disabling malady from ongoing inflammation, autoimmunity, & potential viral reservoirs (GI, brain?). NEW DATA: The Lungs “light up” on special MRI Scans 3 to 9 months later in patients never hospitalized for COVID.
93
2K
4K
My patients toes on #COVID.👇. Patient told me, “I feel like I’m learning to breathe again and failing.” . Imagine how bad his internal organs look now. COVID19 is no cold. My patient wishes so much he had gotten #vaccinated. You have choices! . #Vaxx #Mask
241
2K
3K
1/🧵 The Haunting Brain Science of Long COVID 🧠. @washingtonpost Aug 25. 📍Brain shrinking.📍Corona ghosts.📍Autoimmunity.📍Clinical clusters. “The good news is that in some pts #LongCovid #BrainFog may not be permanent.”. Link👇 but paywall so see 🧵 .
131
2K
3K
1/🧵This weeks 2 important studies on Long COVID. 📌Include ~340k COVID patients vs ~7M controls out to 2 yrs. 📌Organ dysfunction persists in 33%. 📌Levels of disability from #LongCOVID exceed those of cancer & heart disease‼️. Links at end of this thread
122
1K
3K
Death💀of a team member from #COVID19 is especially brutal. Nashville TN USA #nurses #nursepractitioner #physicianassistant #respiratorytherapist and #doctors outside the room of 🙏 before he died of #COVID. #MaskUp #vaccine #MedTwitter #pandemic #Hope
121
580
3K
Nurses are, by nature, problem solvers. When we block their innovative ideas of how to humanize care, it breaks their spirit. The job is hard enough. Allow #nurses to make pts wishes come true w music, ice cream, beer, & dogs! Otherwise we will lose our healers. ❤️🩹.#NurseTwitter
72
514
3K
1/🧵Our speed in understanding Long COVID is accelerating‼️. Here I cover a smorgasbord of recent COVID data on….📍Brain Aging .📍Genetics.📍Epidemiology.📍PEM.📍Self-Protection. Knowledge is Power. We are all at risk of losing Brain Power from #LongCOVID. Let’s learn…
97
1K
3K
1/🧵🎥 A young mom suffering #COVID. Her husband is scared. We need to prevent serious long-term complications. Her new normal will likely include PTSD, Dementia, Depression & severe physical disability. (shown w Perm). Not so “mild” ➡️ Do you want this?. #vaccinate.#LongCOVID
156
1K
3K
@charliemackesy Charlie - i’m a doctor in a #COVID19 ICU & one of my young patients is losing her arms & legs & has also gone deaf - all from COVID. She remains immensely hopeful & beautiful. Tomorrow I’m going to bring her a copy of the boy the mole the fox in the horse and read it with her.
115
222
3K
4/🎥 Dancing: Greg breaks out in #Dance spontaneously wherever we go. He loves to dance. Why? . He says, “Wesley, let’s dance & go on a honeymoon today!” . Greg taught me that happiness is a state of mind. I have a choice & this level of joy can be mine…. …IF I CHOOSE IT.
29
79
2K
1/🧵 Long COVID’s “Disability Roulette”. 🔺No longer a mass Death event….🔺COVID-19 is an ongoing mass #Disability event.🔺You & I might get #LongCOVID.🔺But society is yawning. This thread unpacks science, policy & hope. No Paywall Boston Globe link:.
Long COVID is Disability Roulette @GlobeOpinion ✍🏻👇. ✔️ This Op-Ed is to raise #LongCOVID public awareness.✔️I hope it helps.✔️It will never be enough.✔️The millions suffering deserve more. On Tuesday 5/30 I’ll unpack it & >20 references in a teaching🧵.
91
1K
2K
15/fin.Convinced yet⁉️. #LongCOVID is real. Do not deny your friends & colleagues who say they are disabled. They really can NOT do their jobs or remember things. They are physically suffering. Let’s prepare to help them for the years ahead. Global effort. #Vaccinate please!
115
628
2K
We now provide consenting non-Covid ICU pts a #Covid19 vaccine 💉 before leaving the unit. Small victories add up! 🏆. Still I’ll go on record as saying that we ideally want to #vaccinate people before the ICU!.
34
217
2K
1/🧵 #COVID Brain Changes Show Parallels w Alzheimer's Disease. Findings may point to potential mechanism for #brainfog in people with #longCOVID.
70
1K
2K
1/🧵 Long COVID - new @TheLancet data. 📌A picture is emerging.📌It’s not pretty.📌Most pts w months-long symptoms aren’t recovered @ 2-yrs .📌The cluster including neurocognitive & cardiovasc symptoms is ominous.📌These data fuel trial design. Thoughts….
112
1K
2K
1/🧵 COVID & Autoimmune Diseases - more data 💥 . My patient w #LongCOVID has new Raynaud’s and SLE (Lupus). She’s in tons of pain and is losing her fingers. Study: N=4M people. COVID ⬆️ risk of new autoimmune Dz & vaccine was protective.
134
777
2K
1/🧵 Post-Infectious Syndromes. …a Doctor’s admission. 📌 I didn’t think #MECFS was real till #LongCOVID opened my eyes.📌 It’s “mysterious” & we weren’t taught it in med school.📌 Yet 1,000s are suffering a disease traditional medicine doesn’t understand. 📌 Let’s find answers
128
591
2K
Long COVID is Disability Roulette @GlobeOpinion ✍🏻👇. ✔️ This Op-Ed is to raise #LongCOVID public awareness.✔️I hope it helps.✔️It will never be enough.✔️The millions suffering deserve more. On Tuesday 5/30 I’ll unpack it & >20 references in a teaching🧵.
While society yawns, impatient to move on from the COVID-19 pandemic, Americans still play disability roulette, @WesElyMD writes.
86
991
2K
3/ Hide and Seek: He taught me that if he can’t see me, I can’t see him!. At first that seems nutty, but in truth, for me to enter “into #relationship” w you, we do need to SEE EACH OTHER, right? . So who’s teaching who here?!
12
46
2K
1/🧵Long COVID Brain Problems are a global disaster . 📌Hiding in plain sight.📌Too often ignored by doctors.📌Read our new Lancet-RM article .📌On the intersection of #LongCOVID & #PICS.📌I’ll unpack below. Link gives 6 weeks of open access:.
50
866
2K
COVID Vaccine reduces Long COVID. JAMA data in 2.5k people shows (vs 0 vaccine doses & adjusting for pt differences) 2 to 3 doses of vaccine ⬇️ #LongCOVID by 75% to 85% 👊. B5 #Omicron is SUPER contagious & lessening LC risk is a great incentive to #Vaxx.
82
626
2K
1/🧵 Land Mines in Long COVID - @BostonGlobe. Alex was training for 2024 Olympic Trials 🥇 . That dream exploded 💣 . New #LongCOVID science.📌Viral reservoirs at 1 year.📌Cardiac edema at 1 year.📌Dementia at 2 years.📌Hijacked mitochondria. ScreenShot👇.
41
880
2K
3/ Believing those with #LongCOVID complaints is our 1st basic show of support!. “If people tell us they have new thinking & memory issues, I think we should believe them rather than require that they meet certain severity criteria.”.Dr. Apple UCSF.
14
347
2K
During months of isolation in #COVID19, my mentally sharp 85 yo mom, living alone, descended into #dementia that shocked me. As a physician who studies #LongCOVID, I was wholly unprepared for the enduring effects social isolation would have on some who never even got #COVID.
196
266
2K
5/ Imaging the brain before & after #COVID show changes. Our @CIBScenter #LongCovid support group patients tell us daily that even "mild" COVID leaves people unable to work, care for families, or complete tasks in their job & daily life.
17
513
2K
4/ The cause of #LongCOVID may be persistence of virus in the body. This study N=29 found viral RNA in 51% (plasma, stool or urine) of those w fatigue, pain, lung & heart symptoms. 55% had only mild COVID. Treating with antivirals helped & offers #hope.
17
374
2K
@ANPsummerfield @doctor_oxford Amazing act of love and kindness in #COVID19. Thanks @ANPsummerfield for sharing! . See below we did same thing and here is their story - .
28
209
2K
1/🧵Fusion of Neurons in COVID. 🔹At 2 yrs many #LongCOVID pts still suffer 🧠.🔹We’re beginning to understand why.🔹“Fusogens” activated by viruses like COVID can create irreversible cell-to-cell damage & miscommunication. Pic = Spike infected neuron. Link in Tw 3
50
644
1K
Two brothers getting Donuts. Greg: “Wez-uh-leeeeee, can we get ‘Chockel’ donuts?”. Me: “Let’s go!”. Greg reminds me to take time for simple things in life that matter most‼️. #DownSyndrome #NothingDownAboutIt #UpSyndrome #MoreAlikeThanDifferent #DifferentNotLess #TheLuckyFew
72
43
1K
10/ For our #Neuroscience junkies, here’s what they saw on the MRIs:. Greater reduction in gray matter thickness & tissue contrast in orbitofrontal cortex, parahippocampal gyrus & olfactory cortex. “REDUCTION IN GLOBAL BRAIN SIZE.”. Not good at all. 👎🤬
16
301
1K
5/ Let’s pose some Important Questions:. ✔️Are these findings COVID-specific?.✔️How long do these genetic/cell function changes last?.✔️Do they contribute to #LongCOVID?.✔️What’s the cost of repeat infections?
16
202
1K
🎥 #FathersDay gift like no other ♥️. Dancing w your daughter at her outdoor wedding surrounded by Mother Nature & Tons of Love. I’m putting this #dance in the brain bank for the hard days…. 🎵 “Happened long time ago. A-little bitty pretty one. I’ve been watching you grow”
113
45
1K
1/🧵Can a Diabetes drug prevent Long COVID?. Most solid data yet of a medication preventing #LongCOVID from quadruple blinded, non-pharma sponsored COVID-OUT trial N=1,125. A 42% relative ⬇️ in clinician diagnosed LC was seen (10.6% down to 6.3%).
61
386
1K
1/🧵 Micro Clots & Endothelial Dysfunction in Long COVID. Plus new Epidemiology in @JAMA_current some say proves #LongCOVID is a hoax⁉️. Truth is…endothelial dysfunction plus inflammation can lead to life-altering brain & body dz. Let’s explore data. Pic H/T @VirusesImmunity
32
525
1K
1/🧵🎥 #Delta COVID ALERT‼️. 4th wave has Teens phoning parents to say Goodbye. Beds & Staffing are too tight to monitor visitation. Infxs Dz doc @katieoneallsu told me we’re descending to new lows in a crisis of the #unvaccinated. Listen as she describes a nightmarish reality.
45
652
1K
3/ Consider this:. A study of 150k COVID survivors, hospitalized & not. COVID survivors had 10-15X ‼️higher risk of considering #suicide at 1 year than 11M control patients. This is horrifying, yet people still deny #LongCOVID’s importance. WHY?.
15
371
1K
The fact that mild Covid infections impact the 🧠 brain are completely consistent with many 1,000s of people who were never hospitalized & are suffering “brain fog” a YEAR later. We @CIBScenter are studying this in our NIH-funded investigations. Young people are disabled by this!.
For all those worried about the vaccine 👀.Early research shows even mild COVID-19 impacts brain, but unclear for how long via @timesofisrael.
47
518
1K
🎥 Serious #COVID lands you in the hospital & in 7-10 days you will have tremendous weakness, loss of >20% of muscle & nerve disease (#PICS). OT/PT Therapists work w our patients to bring them back into the land of the living. Listen up…👇. Avoid all this by #Vaccination #Mask
57
488
1K
2/ Cerebrospinal Fluid Offers Clues to #BrainFog. Most pts w new “thinking problems” after mild #COVID had abnormalities in fluid from lumbar punctures (image); controls did not. Delayed #LongCOVID was common in younger people who thought they were safe.
17
249
1K
"Brains donated by people who died of Covid-19 also show widespread problems in the cells lining the blood vessels and exaggerated clotting, supporting the idea of Covid-19 as a blood flow disorder that brings on brain disease." . See article and 🧵👇.
1/🧵The Haunting Brain Science of Long COVID. 📍Here I use science to raise awareness of a growing public health nightmare hiding in plain sight.📍Matt & Barbara tell their stories.📍20 relevant medical articles.📍See 🧵unpacking science in Tweet #2.
31
417
1K
1/🧵 Long COVID’s “Disability Roulette”. 🔺No longer a mass Death event….🔺COVID-19 is an ongoing mass #Disability event.🔺You & I might get #LongCOVID.🔺But society is yawning. This thread unpacks science, policy & hope. No Paywall Boston Globe link:.
26
434
1K
Real Suffering: Long COVID. We must do more to discover scientific answers & medical treatments for LONG-COVID. In our recent Neuro #LongCOVID paper in @LancetRespirMed…read 🧵👇. We had permission to present the true story of this 32-year-old father, husband, firefighter, and
1/🧵Long COVID Brain Problems are a global disaster . 📌Hiding in plain sight.📌Too often ignored by doctors.📌Read our new Lancet-RM article .📌On the intersection of #LongCOVID & #PICS.📌I’ll unpack below. Link gives 6 weeks of open access:.
72
389
1K
5/ Rodents won’t “dream up” symptoms or tissue changes. An animal model of #LongCOVID helps STOP claims that this is just in patients’ minds. Pts are too often victims of Testimonial #Injustice (being silenced) & asked, “Have you seen a psychiatrist?”.
13
248
1K
1/🧵💥 NEW COVID THERAPY SAVES LIVES. Adding baricitinib to steroids will save 1,000s of hospitalized #COVID pts. Our @LancetRespirMed COV-Barrier study is FREE. I explain👇why it’s such a great #Pandemic discovery story: a new way to ⬇️ COVID19 deaths.
58
581
1K
1/🧵ANTICIPATORY REGRET & #COVID #VAXX❗️. This pt was transferred from an outlying hosp on #Ivermectin. She worsened & was intubated. She asked the nurse for a phone to call her family. This is what the patient wrote…look at BOTH PICS (shown w perm).
58
479
1K
25/fin ✔️✔️. #LongCOVID is a REAL, multi-faceted syndrome. It has cognitive, mental health & physical impairments. It can persist years after the virus is gone. It has an emerging molecular basis. Never lose hope for recovery. Sit & Listen. Pts are the expert of their own disease
43
276
1K
6/ In the now famous Mar 7, 2022 UK Biobank @NatureMedicine study, 401 people, most with MILD #COVID & not hospitalized, had MRIs before & after infection. Startling findings were seen in comparison to 384 controls who never had COVID. Let’s unpack….
7
264
1K
❤️ & #COVID19:.Couple married 65 YEARS! Now convalescing as #pandemic survivors. They came to ED holding hands. Initially in separate rooms 👎& got #delirium 😤 so we pushed for same room & now thriving as our Prom 👑 sweethearts. #MedTwitter #TipsForNewDocs #pulmcc #geriatrics
29
212
1K
DOCTORS & NURSES are burning out. ❗️Leading ICU doctor @DavidJanz5 begging Congress for help…”We used to worry about if we’d have enough ventilators. Not now. Now we’re worried we won’t have enough #nurses & #doctors!”.
51
559
1K
2/ First, Epidemiological comparisons…. FLU vs. COVID. Survivors of viral infxns like #Flu don’t complain of 200 long-term symptoms & ~90% ongoing mood disorders. #LongCOVID pts do. Flu kills 0.5M/year vs COVID has killed 10X that (5M) in just 2 years.
22
306
1K
🧵1/ Here’s your “Big Picture” of COVID & Long COVID for 2022. See my new Figure👇 summarizing #COVID19 Management & Outcomes. Two years in & we have splendid choices. Stay in peaceful waters of prevention (green) or risk treacherous cliffs of #LongCOVID & Death (red & black)…
50
516
1K
‼️ Dr. Keith Scott is a respected voice in ICUs. He got COVID Pre-vaccine from his 1st #COVID pt. He healed & months later developed Guillain Barre (neuromuscular paralysis) & almost died. Now >1yr later he’s unable be a doctor due to #LongCOVID. Tragic. 🎥 Get #Vaxxed‼️
57
428
1K
Yes 💯 @DrNadiaChaudhri you are powerfully and wonderfully made! You are why we come to work in ICU medicine. TY for sharing your shuffle!. #A2Fbundle #PICS reduction ❤️🩹.
10
23
1K
1/🧵 BEWARE: Mild” COVID can cause #LongCOVID‼️. @Nature study of N=147 (31 w LongCOVID) found Covid infection exerts unique & prolonged effects on our innate & adaptive immune system over 8 months later. This may drive Long Covid.
42
486
1K
1/🧵 Are you happy?. My brother w #DownSyndrome is teaching me tons of life lessons. In medicine & in life, I make big decisions based on guesstimates of other’s Quality of Life #QOL. I often GET IT WRONG!. What do adults w #disability teach me about TRUTH?. Can I learn?
44
131
1K
Exposure to Spike Protein via a Vaxx is safer than exposure by an actual COVID infxn. 📍Risk of vaccine-related myocarditis is 20 per million.📍Risk of life-altering #LongCOVID after infection is 125,000 per million. 📍I choose the “benefit to risk” ratio of #Vaxx. Get #Boosted
187
277
993
2/ These #LongCOVID pts had NORMAL CT scans but when asked to inhale Xenon, an inert gas, the MRI showed their lungs transferred gases (think oxygen) into the bloodstream abnormally. This is alarming evidence of another weird form of organ damage from COVID not visible on CXR/CT.
18
366
978
1/🧵 “Live every day like you have a terminal illness.”. The most important thing I learned @ISICEM, after 3 ✈️ & 4,400 miles to Belgium for this huge meeting of #COVID ICU doctors, had nothing to do w science. The iconic @JRandallCurtis1 taught me…(pic & story shared w perm)
42
480
986
🎥 #COVID19 took her hands & feet👇. I cried when she sent me this yesterday: Her physical resilience & mental fortitude are my #Inspiration. She sent this 🎥 of her walking w new legs and said to tell YOU…. “Blood clots of #COVID can be prevented w a #Vaccine!” . (shown w perm)
68
460
935
Friends - today we honor all our brothers and sister who live w trisomy 21. Greg my brother teaches me every day what really matters. Beauty in simplicity & that includes this new #TedLasso ice cream Biscuits w the Boss ‼️. #WorldDownDyndromeDay .#T21 #UpSyndrome @DSAInfo
37
53
949