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Effect of Post-COVID-19 on Brain Volume and Glucose Metabolism: Influence of Time Since Infection and Fatigue Status
Journal article   Open access   Peer reviewed

Effect of Post-COVID-19 on Brain Volume and Glucose Metabolism: Influence of Time Since Infection and Fatigue Status

Justin R. Deters, Alexandra C. Fietsam, Phillip E. Gander, Laura L. Boles Ponto and Thorsten Rudroff
Brain sciences, Vol.13(4), 675
04/18/2023
DOI: 10.3390/brainsci13040675
PMCID: PMC10136956
PMID: 37190640
url
https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci13040675View
Published (Version of record) Open Access

Abstract

Post-COVID-19 syndrome (PCS) fatigue is typically most severe <6 months post-infection. Combining magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and positron emission tomography (PET) imaging with the glucose analog [ 18 F]-Fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG) provides a comprehensive overview of the effects of PCS on regional brain volumes and metabolism, respectively. The primary purpose of this exploratory study was to investigate differences in MRI/PET outcomes between people < 6 months (N = 18, 11 female) and > 6 months (N = 15, 6 female) after COVID-19. The secondary purpose was to assess if any differences in MRI/PET outcomes were associated with fatigue symptoms. Subjects > 6 months showed smaller volumes in the putamen, pallidum, and thalamus compared to subjects < 6 months. In subjects > 6 months, fatigued subjects had smaller volumes in frontal areas compared to non-fatigued subjects. Moreover, worse fatigue was associated with smaller volumes in several frontal areas in subjects > 6 months. The results revealed no brain metabolism differences between subjects > 6 and < 6 months. However, both groups exhibited both regional hypo- and hypermetabolism compared to a normative database. These results suggest that PCS may alter regional brain volumes but not metabolism in people > 6 months, particularly those experiencing fatigue symptoms.
brain volume fatigue FDG-PET neuroimaging in post-COVID-19 post-COVID-19

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