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Brain Fog and Quality of Life at Work in Non-Hospitalized Patients after COVID-19.

ABSTRACT: Background: There is still a need for studies on the quality of life (QoL) at work among COVID-19 survivors. Therefore, we aimed to evaluate the association between the brain fog symptoms and the QoL at work in non-hospitalized patients with previous SARS-CoV-2 infection. Methods: Three hundred non-hospitalized patients (79.33% women; median age, 36 years; interquartile range, 30-48 years) were included in the final analysis. An anonymous neuropsychological questionnaire containing eight different questions on the presence of brain fog symptoms in four time intervals, i.e., pre-COVID-19 and 0-4, 4-12, and >12 weeks after infection, was retrospectively introduced to patients and staff of the University Hospital in Krakow. Additionally, a four-point Likert scale was used to evaluate QoL at work in four time periods. Included were participants aged ≥ 18 years in whom the diagnosis of COVID-19 was confirmed by the RT-PCR from nasopharyngeal swab and the first symptoms occurred no earlier than 3 months before the completion of the questionnaire. Results: Before SARS-CoV-2 infection, 28.00% (n = 84) of patients reported poor QoL at work. Within 4, 4-12, and >12 weeks after infection, a decrease in QoL was observed in 75.67% (n = 227), 65.00% (n = 195), and 53.66% (n = 161) of patients, respectively (p < 0.001). With increasing deterioration of the QoL at work, the number of brain fog symptoms increased, and patients with severe QoL impairment exhibited a median of five symptoms for <4, 4-12, and >12 weeks post-COVID-19. In the multivariable logistic regression model, predictors of the deterioration of the QoL at work depended on the time from COVID-19 onset; in the acute phase of the disease (<4 weeks), it was predicted by impairment in remembering information from the past (OR 1.88, 95%CI: 1.18-3.00, p = 0.008) and multitasking (OR 1.96, 95%CI: 1.48-2.58, p < 0.001). Furthermore, an impairment in the QoL at work 4-12 weeks and >12 weeks after COVID-19 was independently associated with age (OR 0.46, 95%CI: 0.25-0.85, p = 0.014 and OR 1.03, 95%CI: 1.01-1.05, p = 0.025, respectively), problems with multitasking (OR 2.05, 95%CI: 1.40-3.01, p < 0.001 and OR 1.75, 95%CI: 1.15-2.66, p = 0.009, respectively), answering questions in an understandable/unambiguous manner (OR 1.99, 95%CI: 1.27-3.14, p = 0.003 and OR 2.00, 95%CI: 1.47-2.36, p = 0.001, respectively), and, only for the >12 week interval, problems with remembering information from the past (OR 2.21, 95%CI: 1.24-3.92, p = 0.007). Conclusions: Certain brain fog symptoms, such as impaired memory or multitasking, are predictors of a poorer QoL at work not only during the acute phase of COVID-19 but also within more than 12 weeks after the onset of infection.

SUBMITTER: Chatys-Bogacka Z

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9564568 | biostudies-literature | 2022 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Brain Fog and Quality of Life at Work in Non-Hospitalized Patients after COVID-19.

Chatys-Bogacka Zaneta Z Mazurkiewicz Iwona I Slowik Joanna J Bociaga-Jasik Monika M Dzieza-Grudnik Anna A Slowik Agnieszka A Wnuk Marcin M Drabik Leszek L

International journal of environmental research and public health 20221006 19

<i>Background:</i> There is still a need for studies on the quality of life (QoL) at work among COVID-19 survivors. Therefore, we aimed to evaluate the association between the brain fog symptoms and the QoL at work in non-hospitalized patients with previous SARS-CoV-2 infection. <i>Methods:</i> Three hundred non-hospitalized patients (79.33% women; median age, 36 years; interquartile range, 30-48 years) were included in the final analysis. An anonymous neuropsychological questionnaire containing ...[more]

PMID: 36232113

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Project description:ObjectivesLimited research exists on COVID-19 associated brain fog, and on the long-term cognitive and psychiatric sequelae in racially and ethnically diverse patients. We characterize the neuropsychological sequelae of post-acute COVID-19 in a diverse cohort and investigate whether COVID-19 clinical severity remains associated with brain fog and cognitive deficits approximately 2 years post infection.MethodsA cross-sectional study of patients with a history of COVID-19 hospitalization (March-September 2020). COVID-19 clinical severity was indexed using the National Early Warning Score 2 and a comprehensive neuropsychological tele-battery was administered 2 years post discharge. Pearson's r correlations assessed association, while independent sample t-tests examined group differences. Significant outcomes were further analyzed using multiple regression and ANCOVAs, adjusting for key covariates.ResultsIn 41 adult patients (19 female, 30 Hispanic, 13 Black, mean age of 65 (SD = 15), COVID-19 level of severity was associated with greater number of endorsed brain fog symptoms (Pearson's r = .34, 95% CI [.04, .59]), worse overall cognitive functioning (global cognition: r = -.36, 95% CI [-.61, -.05]) and reduced performance on an attention and working memory task (digit span backwards: r = -.41, 95% CI [-.66, -.09]) at 2-year follow-up. Brain fog symptoms most associated with COVID-19 severity included difficulty focusing (r = .46, 95% CI [.18, .67]), detached (r = .41, 95% CI [.12, .64]) and feeling sleepy (r = .40, 95% CI [.11, .63]). Patients' cognitive performance was generally below average (global cognition z-score: M = -.96, SD = .66), with group differences based on sex and ethnicity evidenced on individual cognitive tests.DiscussionThis study emphasizes the importance of continued research on the long-term effects of COVID-19 infection on neuropsychological outcomes, particularly among underrepresented, health-disparate groups. Greater understanding of these associations could improve detection and treatment of those at increased risk of cognitive decline or impairment.

Project description:Brain fog is a kind of mental problem, similar to chronic fatigue syndrome, and appears about 3 months after the infection with COVID-19 and lasts up to 9 months. The maximum magnitude of the third wave of COVID-19 in Poland was in April 2021. The research referred here aimed at carrying out the investigation comprising the electrophysiological analysis of the patients who suffered from COVID-19 and had symptoms of brain fog (sub-cohort A), suffered from COVID-19 and did not have symptoms of brain fog (sub-cohort B), and the control group that had no COVID-19 and no symptoms (sub-cohort C). The aim of this article was to examine whether there are differences in the brain cortical activity of these three sub-cohorts and, if possible differentiate and classify them using the machine-learning tools. he dense array electroencephalographic amplifier with 256 electrodes was used for recordings. The event-related potentials were chosen as we expected to find the differences in the patients' responses to three different mental tasks arranged in the experiments commonly known in experimental psychology: face recognition, digit span, and task switching. These potentials were plotted for all three patients' sub-cohorts and all three experiments. The cross-correlation method was used to find differences, and, in fact, such differences manifested themselves in the shape of event-related potentials on the cognitive electrodes. The discussion of such differences will be presented; however, an explanation of such differences would require the recruitment of a much larger cohort. In the classification problem, the avalanche analysis for feature extractions from the resting state signal and linear discriminant analysis for classification were used. The differences between sub-cohorts in such signals were expected to be found. Machine-learning tools were used, as finding the differences with eyes seemed impossible. Indeed, the A&B vs. C, B&C vs. A, A vs. B, A vs. C, and B vs. C classification tasks were performed, and the efficiency of around 60-70% was achieved. In future, probably there will be pandemics again due to the imbalance in the natural environment, resulting in the decreasing number of species, temperature increase, and climate change-generated migrations. The research can help to predict brain fog after the COVID-19 recovery and prepare the patients for better convalescence. Shortening the time of brain fog recovery will be beneficial not only for the patients but also for social conditions.

Project description:BackgroundCurrently, evidence about the long-term consequences of COVID-19 on return to work and health-related quality of life (HRQoL) is limited. We evaluated return to work and its associations with baseline characteristics and physical and mental recovery over time in patients up to 1 year after hospitalization for COVID-19. Secondly, we aimed to evaluate the association between return to work and health-related quality of life (HRQoL).MethodsCO-FLOW, a multicenter prospective cohort study, enrolled adult participants hospitalized for COVID-19, aged ≥ 18 years within 6 months after hospital discharge. Return to work and HRQoL were collected at 3, 6, and 12 months after hospital discharge using the iMTA Productivity Cost Questionnaire and the 36-Item Short Form Health Survey, respectively. Data were collected between July 1, 2020, and September 1, 2022. Generalized estimating equations with repeated measurements were used to assess outcomes over time.ResultsIn the CO-FLOW study, 371 participants were employed pre-hospitalization. At 3, 6, and 12 months post-discharge, 50% (170/342), 29% (92/317), and 15% (44/295) of participants had not returned to work, and 21% (71/342), 21% (65/317), and 16% (48/295) only partially, respectively. ICU admission (adjusted odds ratio (95% confidence interval): 0.17 (0.10 to 0.30), p < 0.001), persistent fatigue (0.93 (0.90 to 0.97), p < 0.001), female sex (0.57 (0.36 to 0.90), p = 0.017), and older age (0.96 (0.93 to 0.98), p < 0.001) were independently associated with no return to work. ICU patients required a longer time to return to work than non-ICU patients. Patients who did not return or partially returned to work reported lower scores on all domains of HRQoL than those who fully returned.ConclusionsOne year after hospitalization for COVID-19, only 69% of patients fully returned to work, whereas 15% did not return and 16% partially returned to work. No or partial return to work was associated with reduced HRQoL. This study suggests that long-term vocational support might be needed to facilitate return to work.Trial registrationWorld Health Organization International Clinical Trials Registry Platform NL8710.

Project description:The lack of available biomarkers for diagnosing and predicting different stages of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is currently one of the main challenges that clinicians are facing. Recent evidence indicates that the plasma levels of specific miRNAs may be significantly modified in COVID-19 patients. Large-scale deep sequencing analysis of small RNA expression was performed on plasma samples from 40 patients hospitalized for severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection (between March and May 2020) (median 13.50 [IQR 9–24] days since symptoms initiation) and 21 healthy noninfected individuals. Patients were categorized as hospitalized not requiring oxygen therapy (n = 6), hospitalized requiring low-flow oxygen (n = 23), and hospitalized requiring high-flow oxygen support (n = 11). A total of 1218 different micro(mi)RNAs were identified. When compared with healthy noninfected donors, SARS-CoV-2 infected patients showed significantly (fold change [FC] >1.2 and adjusted p [padj] <0.05) altered expression of 190 miRNAs. The top 10 differentially expressed (DE) miRNAs were miR-122-5p, let-7b-5p, miR-146a-5p, miR-342-3p, miR-146b-5p, miR-629-5p, miR-24-3p, miR-12136, let-7a-5p, and miR-191-5p, which displayed FC and padj values ranging from 153 to 5 and 2.51 × 10-32 to 2.21 × 10-21, respectively, which unequivocally diagnosed SARS-CoV-2 infection. No differences in blood cell counts and biochemical plasma parameters, including interleukin 6, ferritin and D-dimer, were observed between COVID-19 patients on high-flow oxygen therapy, low-flow oxygen therapy, or not requiring oxygen therapy. Notably, 31 significantly deregulated miRNAs were found when patients on high- and low-flow oxygen therapy were compared. Similarly, 6 DE miRNAs were identified between patients on high flow and those not requiring oxygen therapy. SARS-CoV-2 infection generates a specific miRNA signature in hospitalized patients. Furthermore, specific miRNA profiles are associated with COVID-19 prognosis in severe patients.

Dataset Information

Brain Fog and Quality of Life at Work in Non-Hospitalized Patients after COVID-19.

Publications

Brain Fog and Quality of Life at Work in Non-Hospitalized Patients after COVID-19.

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