Cognitive and Affective Performance of Brazilian Long COVID Patients: An In-Depth Analysis Before and After Psychoeducational Rehabilitation

Abstract

Background

Long COVID patients report various cognitive and affective symptoms that are poorly understood.

Objective

This study analyzed cognitive and affective performance in 208 Long COVID patients pre and post psychoeducational rehabilitation using a standardized screening test of higher cerebral functions. Identifying persistent difficulties may help guide future rehabilitation efforts.

Methods

The sample was comprised by a subset of 208 who completed psychoeducational rehabilitation from 614 Long COVID patients seeking rehabilitation. Performance on specific items was analyzed and compared to a reference sample of 114 educationally matched normal functioning adults.

Results

Detailed item analyses in 208 patients revealed persistent difficulties in the efficiency of learning and memory, affective expression, and the ability to accurately predict verbal memory performance compared to a reference sample. Long COVID patients showed variable performance deficits on attention, visual-spatial problem solving and memory measures. Language and related functions were consistently at a level commensurate with normally functioning individuals.

Conclusions

Persistent cognitive and affective impairments were identified in Long COVID patients post-rehabilitation. Future programs should aim on to improve the efficiency of learning and memory, enhance the range of affective expression, and improve self-awareness of functional capacities. Rehabilitation should consider the multifactorial causes of these neuropsychological symptoms.

Keywords

post-Acute COVID-19 syndrome subjective complaints cognitive test affective neuropsychological test neuropsychological tests psychoeducational rehabilitation

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