Cognitive Function and Neuropsychiatric Disorders after COVID-19: A Long Term Social and Clinical Problem?

SARS-CoV-2 is one more virus that can affect the brain in one way or another. Now, we are only beginning to understand some mechanisms and the degree to which it can impact the nervous system. Considering the rapid accumulation of knowledge about multiple neurological and cognitive symptoms in COVID-19 patients, it seems useful to encourage the development of systematic approaches for the diagnosis, management and treatment of the cognitive aspects of COVID-19. From what is known at this time about the impact of COVID-19 on the brain, the presentation of long-term cognitive sequelae can be expected to be heterogeneous in nature and will depend at least in part on the severity of the disease at the stage acute COVID-19. The long-term essential characteristics of these sequelae will probably be related to a combination of causes and different neuropathological processes in the acute phase. The scope and severity of the current COVID-19 pandemic are unparalleled in modern society. The later implications for neurological function can be just as serious. Although the current focus is on the management of acute diseases, in the near future the focus should be on the long-term consequences of COVID-19 infection and its mitigation, hence the need for the development of systematic approaches for the management of the cognitive and neuropsychiatric aspects of COVID-19.