Cognitive impairment in young adults with post COVID-19 syndrome

Abstract

In this study, we aimed to examine different cognitive domains in a large sample of patients with post COVID-19 syndrome. Two hundred and fourteen patients, 85.04% women, ranged 26 to 64 years (mean = 47.48 years) took part in this investigation. Patients’ processing speed, attention, executive functions and various language modalities were examined online using a comprehensive task protocol designed for this research. Alteration in some of the tasks was observed in 85% of the participants, being the attention and executive functions tests the ones that show the highest percentage of patients with severe impairment. Positive correlations were observed between the age of the participants in almost all the tasks assessed, implying better performance and milder impairment with increasing age. In the comparisons of patients according to age, the oldest patients were found to maintain their cognitive functions relatively preserved, with only a mild impairment in attention and speed processing, while the youngest showed the most marked and heterogeneous cognitive impairment. These results confirm the subjective complaints in patients with post COVID-19 syndrome and, thanks to the large sample size, allow us to observe the effect of patient age on performance, an effect never reported before in patients with these characteristics.

Effects of COVID-19 on cognition and brain health

“…Age Age also plays a role in chronic cognitive impairment after COVID-19 [ 35 , 37 ]. However, the relationship between age and cognitive deficits in COVID-19 is far from linear because some evidence points towards worse performance in young and middle-aged adults compared to older adults (50–64 years) [ 37 , 136 ]. Currently, we cannot exclude the possibility that different mechanisms might underlie cognitive performance in different age groups.…”

Aftereffects in Epigenetic Age Related to Cognitive Decline and Inflammatory Markers in Healthcare Personnel with Post-COVID-19: A Cross-Sectional Study

“…Herrera et al mentions that cognitive difficulties after SARS-Cov2 infection continue for up to two years or more. 15 In contrast, patients with a longer evolution time showed better results in verbal learning and visual memory recall.…”

“… 30 , 49 , 51 According to this, individuals with post-COVID condition have shown a relationship between the severity of deterioration and age, where younger patients show impairment in some cognitive domain more frequently than older ones. 15 , 52 Surprisingly though, young people were considered to have better expectations, because a younger age induces a better prognosis in dementia and acquired brain damage. Herrera et al mentions that cognitive difficulties after SARS-Cov2 infection continue for up to two years or more.…”

“… 10–13 It has been reported that 48 to 56% of individuals who presented COVID-19, have a cognitive decline afterwards, particularly after a severe infection by SARS-CoV-2. 14 , 15 …”

Assessment and Characterization of Covid-19 Related Cognitive Decline: Results From a Natural Experiment

“…[5, 9] Consistent with a view that COVID-19 might cause CRCD, executive dysfunction is associated with COVID-19 severity, [4] and is evident in both mild and moderate COVID-19,[10] irrespective of age at infection and may continue up to two years after COVID-19. [3, 11] Additionally, acute and subacute infarctions are the most common brain MRI findings in studies of neurological PASC, followed by olfactory bulb abnormalities, white matter abnormalities, cerebral microbleeds, and gray matter abnormalities. [13] However, CRCD might manifest predominantly as subjective impairments, with difficulties in inattention, forgetfulness, and brain fog [4] being frequently reported alongside other commonly presenting neurological symptoms such as headaches, fatigue, dizziness, sleep-related symptoms, and ageusia/anosmia.…”