Long-Term Effects of Coronavirus (long COVID) on Memory and Gray Matter Volume, A Narrative Review

Introduction: COVID-۱۹ is a pandemic with many challenges that are now developing to its long-term sequences. “Long-COVID-۱۹”, “post-acute COVID-۱۹”, “ongoing symptomatic COVID۱۹”, “chronic COVID-۱۹”, “post COVID-۱۹ syndrome”, and “long-haul COVID-۱۹” are the terms that are used to describe as having symptoms that are severe or mild for more than ۱۲ weeks after infection and there is no other reason to explain that. Despite the growing number of studies on COVID-۱۹, little is known about neuropsychiatric symptoms. With the reemergence of new waves of SARS-CoV-۲ infection, Long-COVID is expected to produce another public health tension in addition to the current pandemic. With the data on LongCOVID-۱۹ still emerging, the present review aims to highlight its effect on memory and the Gray Matter Volume .Method: Google scholar and PubMed are the databases that I used them to search about this subject by some keywords. l tried to analyze articles with different geographies examined that are cited in my paper .Neuropsychiatric symptoms are the most common symptoms of long-COVID. As accumulating evidence suggests that the survival of SARS-CoV-۲ infection affects brain physiology, further investigation of brain structural changes in relation to the course and burden of neuropsychiatric symptoms in the long term of covid is necessary .Results: The results of the studies reviewed by me, show that general cognition, psychomotor speed, and sustained attention may reduce in long-COVID. Significantly the gray matter volume in long-COVID patients were grown up in some clusters (spanning frontotemporal areas, insula, hippocampus, amygdala, basal ganglia, and thalamus in both hemispheres). Gray matter volume changes in limbic and secondary olfactory areas are present in long-COVID patients and might be dynamic over time .Conclusion: However, a clinical trial study published in December ۲۰۲۲ (that studied ۵۶ COVID-۱۹ patients and ۳۷ matched controls) states that there were no differences in neuropsychological performance between the patient group and the control group. Also, the patient group had lower projections and commissural tracts, but no changes was seen in their gray matter. Also, three other studies in different statistical communities showed that no significant changes were observed in the gray matter of patients after contracting Covid-۱۹.Further research and randomized clinical trials are necessary to evaluate longterm consequences of long-COVID on memory and it warrants setting-up of dedicated, post-COVID care, multi-disciplinary clinics, and rehabilitation centers.Thus, it becomes imperative to emphasize this condition and disseminate its awareness to medical professionals, patients, the public, and policymakers alike to prepare and augment health care facilities for continued surveillance of these patients.

کلیدواژه ها:

memory ، long-COVID ، symptoms ، gray matter volume ، neuropsychiatric