Abstract

Many coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) positive individuals exhibit abnormal electroencephalographic (EEG) activity reflecting “brain fog” and mild cognitive impairments even months after the acute phase of infection. Resting-state EEG abnormalities include EEG slowing (reduced alpha rhythm; increased slow waves) and epileptiform activity. An expert panel conducted a systematic review to present compelling evidence that cognitive deficits due to COVID-19 and to Alzheimer’s disease and related dementia (ADRD) are driven by overlapping pathologies and neurophysiological abnormalities. EEG abnormalities seen in COVID-19 patients resemble those observed in early stages of neurodegenerative diseases, particularly ADRD. It is proposed that similar EEG abnormalities in Long COVID and ADRD are due to parallel neuroinflammation, astrocyte reactivity, hypoxia, and neurovascular injury. These neurophysiological abnormalities underpinning cognitive decline in COVID-19 can be detected by routine EEG exams. Future research will explore the value of EEG monitoring of COVID-19 patients for predicting long-term outcomes and monitoring efficacy of therapeutic interventions.

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

10-2024

Notes/Citation Information

This is an open access article under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial License, which permits use, distribution and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited and is not used for commercial purposes. © 2024 The Author(s). Alzheimer’s & Dementia published by Wiley Periodicals LLC on behalf of Alzheimer’s Association.

Digital Object Identifier (DOI)

https://doi.org/10.1002/alz.14089

Funding Information

United States National Institute of Health; National Institute of Aging, Grant/Award Numbers: P01AG078116, P30AG072946, R01AG063857, R01AG057234, R01AG054484, R56AG060608, 1R21AG046637; United States Department of Veterans Affairs, Grant/Award Number: 5I21RX003173; Alzheimer’s Association, Grant/Award Numbers: SG-20-725707, HAT-07-60437, AARF-21-848281; ANID/FONDECYT Regular, Grant/Award Numbers: 1210195, 1210176, 1220995; ANID/PIA/ANILLOS, Grant/Award Number: ACT210096; FONDEF, Grant/Award Numbers: ID20I10152, ID22I10029; ANID/FONDAP, Grant/Award Numbers: 15150012, 15150012; Takeda, Grant/Award Number: CW2680521; MULTI-PARTNER CONSORTIUM TO EXPAND DEMENTIA RESEARCH IN LATIN AMERICA; Tau Consortium; Global Brain Health Institute; HORIZON 2021, Grant/Award Number: H2021-MSCA-DN-2021; Marie Skłodowska-Curie Doctoral Networks, Grant/Award Numbers: 101071485, PNRR-MAD-2022-12376415; Italian Ministry of University, Scientific and Technological Research, Grant/Award Number: 2010SH7H3F

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