A recent study from Northwestern Medicine under the direction of Dr. Igor Koralnik has highlighted the urgent need for specialized clinical care to address the complex neurologic symptoms that long-term COVID patients experience. The study, which included 66 patients with neurolong COVID, found that a lack of identification for these symptoms has resulted in underdiagnosis and unmet clinical needs.

The study delves into the range of neurologic symptoms encountered by long-term COVID patients, shedding light on the complexity and persistence of these health conditions. Among the participants, 59.4% experienced difficulties remembering information, also known as "brain fog," and 55.7% struggled with weariness, a symptom that has seriously impaired their capacity to work and maintain their quality of life. Other symptoms reported by participants were sleep difficulties (32%), headaches (31%), and paraesthesia, or feelings of numbness and pins and needles (11.3%). Furthermore, 9.4% reported having myalgia, or muscular pain.
A subgroup of the study participants had in-person neurological assessments and cognitive testing. In this cohort, 16.9% took the Montreal Cognitive Assessment, a measure commonly used in clinical settings to assess for cognitive impairment, and received findings indicating mild cognitive impairment.
This cognitive impairment in long-term COVID patients has larger consequences for the workforce and economy because these symptoms primarily impact people in their prime working years. According to an ongoing National Center for Health Statistics survey, roughly 14 million adults in the United States are currently suffering from long-term COVID, despite the fact that immunizations and booster doses are routinely available. The long-term impact of COVID on these people not only impairs their lives, but it also places a major demand on public health resources and economic output.

Millenia Jimenez, a study co-author and Koralnik laboratory researcher, expressed a similar concern about the long-term impact of untreated neuro-long COVID symptoms on the health and well-being of patients. "These symptoms don't just go away, and we need to start treating them as part of a larger health crisis," Jimenez added.
Looking ahead, the research team intends to expand their findings beyond the United States. Koralnik and his colleagues plan to investigate therapy possibilities for cognitive dysfunction and brain fog in neuro-long COVID patients in Nigeria, using similar therapeutic techniques to those used in Chicago. This project emphasizes the global necessity of tackling the long-term neurologic consequences of COVID, as well as the need for international collaboration in creating effective treatments.
As COVID-19 persists, experts such as Koralnik advocate for increased awareness, diagnosis, and treatment alternatives that address the particular issues of neuro-long COVID patients. Koralnik's message is clear: without adequate recognition and devoted resources, COVID's long-term neurologic effects will continue to burden people and society as a whole.