PMU-Autor/inn/en
Nardone RaffaeleAbstract
More than half of patients who recover from COVID-19 experience fatigue. We studied fatigue using neuropsychological and neurophysiological investigations in post-COVID-19 patients and healthy subjects. Neuropsychological assessment included: Fatigue Severity Scale (FSS), Fatigue Rating Scale, Beck Depression Inventory, Apathy Evaluation Scale, cognitive tests, and computerized tasks. Neurophysiological examination was assessed before (PRE) and 2 min after (POST) a 1-min fatiguing isometric pinching task and included: maximum compound muscle action potential (CMAP) amplitude in first dorsal interosseous muscle (FDI) following ulnar nerve stimulation, resting motor threshold, motor evoked potential (MEP) amplitude and silent period (SP) duration in right FDI following transcranial magnetic stimulation of the left motor cortex. Maximum pinch strength was measured. Perceived exertion was assessed with the Borg-Category-Ratio scale. Patients manifested fatigue, apathy, executive deficits, impaired cognitive control, and reduction in global cognition. Perceived exertion was higher in patients. CMAP and MEP were smaller in patients both PRE and POST. CMAP did not change in either group from PRE to POST, while MEP amplitudes declined in controls POST. SP duration did not differ between groups PRE, increased in controls but decreased in patients POST. Patients" change of SP duration from PRE to POST was negatively correlated to FSS. Abnormal SP shortening and lack of MEP depression concur with a reduction in post-exhaustion corticomotor inhibition, suggesting a possible GABA
Useful keywords (using NLM MeSH Indexing)
Action Potentials/physiology*
Aged
Aged, 80 and over
COVID-19/complications*
COVID-19/physiopathology
COVID-19/psychology
Evoked Potentials, Motor/physiology
Executive Function/physiology*
Fatigue/physiopathology
Fatigue/psychology
Fatigue/virology*
Female
Humans
Male
Middle Aged
Motor Cortex/physiopathology
Muscle, Skeletal/physiopathology*
Neuropsychological Tests
Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation
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