Memory loss and attention deficit are common in people who have survived severe COVID-19. These and other cognitive impairments have also been seen in mild cases more than 18 months after infection, according to a study by researchers at the University of São Paulo (USP) in Brazil.
An article on the study is published in the journal BMC Psychology. The findings highlight the need for more comprehensive rehabilitation to address the lasting cognitive impacts of long COVID, the authors write.
Data from 302 volunteers showed cognitive impairment in 11.7% of mild patients, 39.2% of moderate patients, and 48.9% of severe patients.
“Although the damage done by the disease in terms of memory loss, attention deficit and slow processing increases in proportion to its severity, the same problems affect a far from negligible number of people – around 100 in our study – who had mild or moderate COVID,” said Antônio de Pádua Serafim, first author of the article and a professor at the Institute of Psychology (IP-USP).
The results of the study, which was funded by FAPESP, evidence the potential impact of neuroinflammation due to infection by SARS-CoV-2.
“Memory loss and attention deficit are known to be associated with post-intensive care syndrome due to intubation under deep anesthesia. Some of the data analyzed in the study, however, was from patients who didn’t require intensive care or didn’t even have sufficient symptoms to be hospitalized and nevertheless exhibited memory loss and attention deficit. The findings therefore opened our eyes to the question of neuroinflammation due to COVID-19,” Serafim said.
According to Serafim, evidence has shown that SARS-CoV-2 can affect the central nervous system, lungs, kidneys, heart, and muscles, but the extent of the damage is not well understood. “We don’t know if cognitive impairment due to COVID-19 is permanent, and we’re evaluating ways to intervene in this process,” he said.
In partnership with other researchers at USP, Serafim is developing programs to mitigate cognitive losses caused by COVID-19. The goal is to find out if techniques like neurostimulation and neurofeedback can reduce or reverse memory loss and attention deficit.
