Related Experiment Video
Updated: Sep 29, 2025
Quantification of Neurovascular Protection Following Repetitive Hypoxic Preconditioning and Transient Middle Cerebral Artery Occlusion in Mice
Published on: May 4, 2015
Long-term cognitive impairments following COVID-19: a possible impact of hypoxia
Thibaut Dondaine1,2, Florine Ruthmann3, Fanny Vuotto4
1Univ. Lille, Inserm, CHULille, LilNCog, Lille Neuroscience and Cognition, 59000, Lille, France. thibaut.dondaine2@univ-lille.fr.
Background:
Cognitive and emotional disorders frequently persist after recovery from the acute symptoms of COVID-19; possible explanations include pneumonia-induced hypoxia, infection of the central nervous system, and microstrokes. The objective of the present study was to characterize the impact of hypoxia on the cognitive and psychological profile following COVID-19.
Methods:
Sixty-two patients with COVID-19 were enrolled in a cross-sectional study and divided into two groups based on disease severity: outpatients with no pulmonary complications vs. inpatients with hypoxemic pneumonia having received oxygen therapy. All the participants underwent a comprehensive neuropsychological evaluation that included depression, anxiety, fatigue, sleepiness, attentional, memory and executive processes, and social cognition. For the inpatients, we also collected laboratory data (blood gas, blood glucose, fibrin, fibrinogen, D-dimer, and C-reactive protein).
Results:
Cognitive disorders was found in patients with COVID-19: at least 18% had an impairment of memory and 11% had attentional dysfunctions. A high level of fatigue (90% of the patients), anxiety (52%), and depression (50%) was also observed. The impairments in attentional (p < 0.001 for omission and commission in CPT 3) and memory (p < 0.003 for Index Cue Efficiency from free and cue selected reminding test) functions were greater in COVID-19 inpatients that in COVID-19 outpatients. In contrast, levels of fatigue, depression, and anxiety were similarly high in both groups.
Conclusions:
These findings might help to improve the management of COVID-19 patients as a function of the disease severity in particular for patients with hypoxia.
Related Concept Videos
01:23Hypoxia
Types of Hypoxia
There are four primary types of hypoxia, each resulting from a different cause:
1. Anemic hypoxia: This type occurs due to insufficient oxygen delivery caused by a lack of red blood cells (RBCs) or RBCs with abnormal or...
01:21Acute Respiratory Failure-II
The underlying physiological abnormalities that contribute to hypoxemic respiratory failure include:
01:03Long-term Depression
Calcium Ion Concentration Mechanism
If over...
01:30Cognitive Development During Adulthood
01:19Respiratory Assessment: Purpose and Indications
Objectives and Importance:
The primary goal of respiratory assessment is to evaluate patients at early risk of clinical deterioration. Since respiratory distress often precedes other signs of declining health, breathing patterns and sounds become a...
01:20COPD: Pathogenesis and Clinical Features
The primary cause for the onset of COPD is cigarette smoking and exposure to air pollution. These hazardous factors initiate a chain reaction within the lungs, resulting in chronic inflammation, damage to the airways, and a...