Cognitive decline and brainstem hypometabolism in long COVID: A case series

Abstract

Abstract Objective To assess FDG cerebral PET in patients suffering from cognitive impairment linked to Long COVID. The COVID pandemic has affected dozens of millions of people around the world and has resulted in the deaths of more than 3 million people. Following the acute forms, it has been reported sometimes long forms of COVID, with involvements of several organs including the brain. Neurological complications can include cognitive disturbances (brain fog) that are very common and can seriously disturb the life of patients. Methods Fluorodeoxyglucose PETs were performed in 3 patients with cognitive decline following COVID infection. Results We report here 3 cases of brain fog with major hypometabolic areas of the pons revealed by the cerebral FDG PET. Conclusion The dysfunction of the locus coeruleus in these patients could partly explain the cognitive disorders observed. Further studies involving larger cohorts of patients suffering from cognitive dysfunction will be needed to determine if the brainstem is frequently affected in these patients.

Keywords

• brainstem lesions
• cerebral FDG PET
• cognitive deficits
• long COVID