Neurological Disorders in Hospitalized Patients with Covid-19: Clinical Symptoms, Treatment and Rehabilitation

Abstract

Aim: To establish the spectrum of neurologic disorders in patients with coronavirus disease 2019, and to clarify what are their clinical peculiarities? Materials and Methods: We analyzed retrospectively the clinical, radiological, and neuropathological findings of the patients who entered our clinics between October 2020 and the end of March 2021. Neurological syndromes developing during or after the disease, which were likely to be associated with COVID-19 on clinical and laboratory grounds, were included in the group of interest. Cases for which a more likely alternative pathology was found were excluded. Results: In a case series of 515 patients with Covid-19, neurologic symptoms were observed in 173 (33.6%) patients and were more common in patients with severe infection (47.8%) according to their respiratory status, which included acute cerebrovascular events, impaired consciousness, and muscle injury. Encephalopathy (29/16.7), and neuropathy 36 (20.8) dominated among neurological syndromes. Conclusions: Neurologic symptoms manifest in a significant part of patients with Covid-19. The most common were fever, fatigue, dyspnoea, and muscle-join pains.