Effect of Post-COVID-19 on Brain Volume and Glucose Metabolism: Influence of Time Since Infection and Fatigue Status

Abstract

Post-COVID-19 syndrome (PCS) fatigue is typically most severe 18F]-Fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG) provides a comprehensive overview of the effects of PCS on regional brain volumes and metabolism, respectively. The primary purpose of this exploratory study was to investigate differences in MRI/PET outcomes between people 6 months (N = 15, 6 female) after COVID-19. The secondary purpose was to assess if any differences in MRI/PET outcomes were associated with fatigue symptoms. Subjects > 6 months showed smaller volumes in the putamen, pallidum, and thalamus compared to subjects 6 months, fatigued subjects had smaller volumes in frontal areas compared to non-fatigued subjects. Moreover, worse fatigue was associated with smaller volumes in several frontal areas in subjects > 6 months. The results revealed no brain metabolism differences between subjects > 6 and 6 months, particularly those experiencing fatigue symptoms.

Keywords

• post-COVID-19
• FDG-PET
• brain volume
• fatigue
• neuroimaging in post-COVID-19