When SARS-CoV-2 began to spread, older adults experienced disproportionately greater adverse effects from the pandemic, including exacerbation of pre-existing physical and cognitive frailty conditions. More severe complications, higher mortality, and concerns about disruptions to their daily routines and access to care. Knowledge about the impact of COVID-19 on the brain is rapidly accumulating and this is reflected in the increasing use of the term “neurocovid”. Co-involvement of the central and peripheral nervous system had already been observed in SARS patients, but COVID-19 seems to invade it with greater affinity than other coronaviruses. This chapter provides an overview of the expanding understanding of the multiple ways in which COVID-19 affects the human brain, discuss the likelihood of long-term sequelae of neurocovid, and their implications for cognitive functions and behaviors in the elderly.

"Neurocovid": An Analysis of the Impact of Covid-19 on the Older Adults. Evolving Psychological and Neuropsychological Understanding

Sara Palermo
2021-01-01

Abstract

When SARS-CoV-2 began to spread, older adults experienced disproportionately greater adverse effects from the pandemic, including exacerbation of pre-existing physical and cognitive frailty conditions. More severe complications, higher mortality, and concerns about disruptions to their daily routines and access to care. Knowledge about the impact of COVID-19 on the brain is rapidly accumulating and this is reflected in the increasing use of the term “neurocovid”. Co-involvement of the central and peripheral nervous system had already been observed in SARS patients, but COVID-19 seems to invade it with greater affinity than other coronaviruses. This chapter provides an overview of the expanding understanding of the multiple ways in which COVID-19 affects the human brain, discuss the likelihood of long-term sequelae of neurocovid, and their implications for cognitive functions and behaviors in the elderly.
2021
Fighting the COVID-19 Pandemic
IntechOpen Limited
1
13
978-1-83968-216-2
978-1-83968-217-9
https://www.intechopen.com/chapters/77830
COVID-19, SARS-CoV-2, neurocovid, long term pandemic fatigue, mechanisms of brain damage, brain dysfunction, neurology, neuropsychology, neuropsychiatry, cognitive dysfunctions, mood changes, anxiety, depression, social isolation, frailty, elderly, older adults
Sara Palermo
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Utilizza questo identificativo per citare o creare un link a questo documento: https://hdl.handle.net/2318/1867902
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