07-25-2024

Even mild COVID can cause prolonged cognitive impairment

Earth.com staff writer

Memory loss and attention deficit are common complaints among those who have recovered from severe COVID-19. However, a new study from the University of São Paulo (USP) in Brazil reveals that even individuals with mild COVID cases can experience cognitive impairments more than 18 months after infection.

This finding underscores the importance of comprehensive rehabilitation for long COVID sufferers.

COVID infection and cognitive impairment

The study, published in the journal BMC Psychology, collected data from 302 volunteers and found cognitive impairment in 11.7 percent of mild cases, 39.2 percent of moderate cases, and 48.9 percent of severe cases. These results highlight the significant impact of neuroinflammation caused by SARS-CoV-2.

“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,” explained Antônio de Pádua Serafim, the study’s first author and a professor at the Institute of Psychology (IP-USP).

Memory and attention impairments

The results of the study emphasize the potential impact of neuroinflammation due to COVID-19 infection. Memory and attention impairments are not limited to those who were intubated or received intensive care.

“Some of the data analyzed in the study were 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,” Serafim noted. “The findings therefore opened our eyes to the question of neuroinflammation due to COVID-19.”

Attention and memory are crucial cognitive functions that significantly affect daily life. Participants with poor memory and attention test scores reported difficulties recalling words or performing routine activities, such as forgetting pots on the stove or failing to pick up children from school.

“Attention is the primary function in all mental activity, and this explains why attention deficit has such a huge impact on people’s daily lives. Impairment of attention in turn affects memory. This also affects processing activity, which involves rapid decision-making based on information,” Serafim explained.

Addressing impairments in COVID recovery

The study, funded by the São Paulo Research Foundation (FAPESP), points to the importance of addressing cognitive impairments in COVID-19 recovery. Serafim and his colleagues at USP are developing programs to mitigate these cognitive losses.

They are exploring non-invasive techniques like neurostimulation and neurofeedback to enhance brain function through neuromodulation, which stimulates synaptic connections.

“We have only case studies so far. For example, in the case of a physician who was in the intensive care unit for 34 days, we conducted a neurofeedback protocol often used to study patients with attention deficit disorder, and he made a good recovery. But that was an isolated case,” Serafim said.

Emotional and cognitive difficulties persist

Despite the end of the severe phase of the pandemic, the cognitive sequelae persist. Serafim emphasized the need for effective intervention programs to address both emotional and cognitive difficulties resulting from COVID-19.

Serafim said that based on the knowledge his team has acquired so far regarding cognitive stimulation and rehabilitation techniques, he believes it may be possible to obtain an improvement in neural connectivity by means of brain training to stimulate overall cognitive ability.

“Many people were infected, and many have sequelae of this kind. However, we don’t have an effective program to intervene not only in the emotional aspects but also in the cognitive difficulties resulting from COVID-19,” said Serafim.

Rehabilitation programs are needed

The researchers noted that the findings provide empirical evidence regarding cognitive effects post-COVID-19, particularly in individuals experiencing severe disease manifestations.

“Moreover, our study has demonstrated the presence of cognitive difficulties in individuals infected with mild and moderate symptoms, emphasizing the intricate nature of factors associated with COVID-19, as underscored in the existing literature.”

The experts said they have also highlighted the need for a comprehensive, multidimensional approach in rehabilitation programs to address the enduring cognitive impacts of COVID-19.