British study: Long COVID could affect brain function for over two years

Researchers at King's College London spent two years investigating how an infection with the SARS-CoV-2 virus affects the cognitive performance of patients. Towards this end, the researchers compared people with and without an infection that had been overcome. To measure cognitive performance, the participants took two online tests, one in 2021 (3,335 participants) and one in 2022 (1,768 participants who had also taken the first online test). Among other things, their memory performance, attention and ability to concentrate were measured.  

The results, which have now been published in the specialist journal e-ClinicalMedicine (part of The Lancet Discovery Science), show that people who contracted COVID-19 and made a full recovery had no measurable cognitive impairment two years later. A different picture emerged in patients who were still reporting complaints 12 weeks after the acute SARS-CoV-2 infection or whose complaints were particularly severe: Cognitive deficits following a SARS-CoV-2 infection were still detectable almost two years after the infection.