Neurological consequences of COVID-19: what have we learned and where do we go from here?

TL;DR

This paper reviews what is known about the neurological effects of COVID-19 and suggests possible therapeutic targets to reduce these effects.

Contribution

The paper summarizes current literature on SARS-CoV-2's impact on the central nervous system and proposes therapeutic development targets.

Findings

SARS-CoV-2 can cause neurological symptoms like headaches, anosmia, and cerebral infarction.

There is a need for controlled studies to develop therapies targeting neurological consequences of COVID-19.

Abstract

The coronavirus disease-19 (COVID-19) pandemic is an unprecedented worldwide health crisis. COVID-19 is caused by SARS-CoV-2, a highly infectious pathogen that is genetically similar to SARS-CoV. Similar to other recent coronavirus outbreaks, including SARS and MERS, SARS-CoV-2 infected patients typically present with fever, dry cough, fatigue, and lower respiratory system dysfunction, including high rates of pneumonia and acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS); however, a rapidly accumulating set of clinical studies revealed atypical symptoms of COVID-19 that involve neurological signs, including headaches, anosmia, nausea, dysgeusia, damage to respiratory centers, and cerebral infarction. These unexpected findings may provide important clues regarding the pathological sequela of SARS-CoV-2 infection. Moreover, no efficacious therapies or vaccines are currently available, complicating the clinical management of COVID-19 patients and emphasizing the public health need for controlled, hypothesis-driven experimental studies to provide a framework for therapeutic development. In this mini-review, we summarize the current body of literature regarding the central nervous system (CNS) effects of SARS-CoV-2 and discuss several potential targets for therapeutic development to reduce neurological consequences in COVID-19 patients.

Figures