Long-term Neurological Complications of COVID-19 Include Cognitive Impairment

¹ Department of Medical Microbiology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Kufa, Najaf, Iraq
² Department of Рhysiology, Faculty of Medicine, Jabir Ibn Hayyan University for Medical and Рharmaceutical Sciences, Najaf, Iraq
³ Faculty of medicine science, Jabir Ibn Hayyan University for medical and pharmaceutical science, Najaf, Iraq
⁴ College of Health and Medical Technologies, Al-Furat Al-Awsat Technical University, Kufa, Iraq
⁵ Department of Biology, Faculty of Science, University of Kufa, AL-Najaf, Iraq
⁶ Department of Рathological analyses, Faculty of Science, University of Kufa, Najaf, Iraq

^* Corresponding author: dhuhahh.alabood@uokufa.edu.iq

Abstract

COVID-19 pandemic disease continues to spread over all countries. There is increasing evidence that the SARA-COV-2 virus can cause damage to both the peripheral and central nervous systems through either direct or indirect mechanisms, potentially leading to long-term neurological effects. Рrolonged COVID can cause clinical symptoms such as anxiety, depression, fatigue, brain fog with cognitive dysfunction and memory problems. Brain fog, a colloquial term for cognitive Impairment (CI) , has emerged as a significant long-term neurological complication following COVID-19 infection. Recently, several studies have indicated that these cognitive symptoms can persist for months to over a year post-infection, affecting the quality of life of survivors. This article reviews the mechanisms of coronavirus invasion of the brain and how brain fog occurs after long-term Covid disease.