{"id":70910,"date":"2025-10-27T18:31:37","date_gmt":"2025-10-27T16:31:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.uol.ac.cy\/?p=70910"},"modified":"2025-10-27T18:32:28","modified_gmt":"2025-10-27T16:32:28","slug":"cognitive-and-psychological-symptoms-in-post-covid-19-condition-a-systematic-review-of-structural-and-functional-neuroimaging-neurophysiology-and-intervention-studies","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.uol.ac.cy\/en\/cognitive-and-psychological-symptoms-in-post-covid-19-condition-a-systematic-review-of-structural-and-functional-neuroimaging-neurophysiology-and-intervention-studies\/","title":{"rendered":"Cognitive and Psychological Symptoms in Post-COVID-19 Condition: A Systematic Review of Structural and Functional Neuroimaging, Neurophysiology, and Intervention Studies"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Abstract<\/h4>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Objective<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>To investigate the structural, functional, and neurophysiological brain changes associated with post-COVID-19 condition (PCC)-related cognitive and psychological issues and evaluate the efficacy of noninvasive brain stimulation (NIBS) and cognitive rehabilitation interventions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Data Sources<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Electronic databases, including Web of Science, PubMed, and Embase, were systematically searched for articles published before February 1, 2025, using terms such as \u201cpost-COVID-19 condition,\u201d \u201ccognitive dysfunction,\u201d \u201cbrain changes,\u201d \u201cnoninvasive brain stimulation,\u201d and \u201ccognitive rehabilitation.\u201d Language was restricted to English, and only studies involving human participants were included.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Study Selection<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Studies with human participants aged \u226518 years diagnosed with PCC, employing magnetic resonance imaging, functional magnetic resonance imaging, positron emission tomography, and electroencephalography, and interventions such as NIBS and cognitive rehabilitation were included. Articles were selected through independent review by multiple authors, with consensus resolving discrepancies. Of the 123 studies initially identified, 78 met the inclusion criteria.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Data Extraction<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Data on participant demographics, methodologies, neurophysiological changes, and intervention outcomes were extracted by 2 independent reviewers using predefined guidelines. Study quality was assessed using the Newcastle-Ottawa Scale and Critical Appraisal Skills Program tools.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Data Synthesis<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Seventy-eight studies with over 5900 participants met the inclusion criteria. Significant cognitive impairments were observed in attention, executive function, and memory (N=78). Key findings included mixed evidence of gray matter (N=16) and white matter volume changes (N=20), cortical thickness alterations (N=9), variations in functional connectivity (N=14), electrophysiology (N=9), and blood flow (N=8). NIBS, including transcranial magnetic stimulation (N=8) and transcranial direct current stimulation (N=2), showed potential benefits for managing depression and cognitive impairments. Although cognitive rehabilitation (N=3) showed promise, it requires further investigation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Conclusions<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>This review highlights the complex neurologic underpinnings of PCC and the potential of NIBS and cognitive rehabilitation as interventions. Further research is essential to refine these interventions and establish evidence-based strategies for addressing long-term cognitive and psychological effects of PCC.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p style=\"font-size:15px\"><em><strong>Pettemeridou, E.<\/strong>, Loizidou, M., Trajkovic, J., Constantinou, M., De Smet, S., Baeken, C., Sack, A.T., Williams, S.C.R. Constantinidou., F. (2025). Cognitive and Psychological Symptoms in Post COVID-19 Condition: A Systematic Review of Structural and Functional Neuroimaging, Neurophysiology, and Intervention Studies.\u00a0Archives of Rehabilitation Research and Clinical Translation, 100461. <\/em><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-uagb-buttons uagb-buttons__outer-wrap uagb-btn__default-btn uagb-btn-tablet__default-btn uagb-btn-mobile__default-btn uagb-block-9e7fd406\"><div class=\"uagb-buttons__wrap uagb-buttons-layout-wrap \">\n<div class=\"wp-block-uagb-buttons-child uagb-buttons__outer-wrap uagb-block-75ea6aa8 wp-block-button\"><div class=\"uagb-button__wrapper\"><a class=\"uagb-buttons-repeater wp-block-button__link\" aria-label=\"\" href=\"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1016\/j.arrct.2025.100461\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" role=\"button\"><div class=\"uagb-button__link\">learn more<\/div><span class=\"uagb-button__icon uagb-button__icon-position-after\"><svg xmlns=\"https:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" viewBox=\"0 0 448 512\" aria-hidden=\"true\" focussable=\"false\"><path d=\"M438.6 278.6l-160 160C272.4 444.9 264.2 448 256 448s-16.38-3.125-22.62-9.375c-12.5-12.5-12.5-32.75 0-45.25L338.8 288H32C14.33 288 .0016 273.7 .0016 256S14.33 224 32 224h306.8l-105.4-105.4c-12.5-12.5-12.5-32.75 0-45.25s32.75-12.5 45.25 0l160 160C451.1 245.9 451.1 266.1 438.6 278.6z\"><\/path><\/svg><\/span><\/a><\/div><\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Abstract Objective To investigate the structural, functional, and neurophysiological brain changes associated with post-COVID-19 condition (PCC)-related cognitive and psychological issues and evaluate the efficacy of noninvasive brain stimulation (NIBS) and cognitive rehabilitation interventions. Data Sources Electronic databases, including Web of Science, PubMed, and Embase, were systematically searched for articles published before February 1, 2025, using [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":17,"featured_media":69151,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_seopress_robots_primary_cat":"none","_seopress_titles_title":"","_seopress_titles_desc":"","_seopress_robots_index":"","_seopress_analysis_target_kw":"","_uag_custom_page_level_css":"","site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"set","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center 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Objective To investigate the structural, functional, and neurophysiological brain changes associated with post-COVID-19 condition (PCC)-related cognitive and psychological issues and evaluate the efficacy of noninvasive brain stimulation (NIBS) and cognitive rehabilitation interventions. Data Sources Electronic databases, including Web of Science, PubMed, and Embase, were systematically searched for articles published before February 1, 2025, using&hellip;","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/peAODB-irI","publishpress_future_action":{"enabled":false,"date":"2026-05-17 22:07:05","action":"change-status","newStatus":"draft","terms":[],"taxonomy":"category","extraData":[]},"publishpress_future_workflow_manual_trigger":{"enabledWorkflows":[]},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.uol.ac.cy\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/70910","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.uol.ac.cy\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.uol.ac.cy\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.uol.ac.cy\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/17"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.uol.ac.cy\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=70910"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.uol.ac.cy\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/70910\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.uol.ac.cy\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/69151"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.uol.ac.cy\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=70910"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.uol.ac.cy\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=70910"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.uol.ac.cy\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=70910"},{"taxonomy":"publication_author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.uol.ac.cy\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/publication_author?post=70910"},{"taxonomy":"publication_year","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.uol.ac.cy\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/publication_year?post=70910"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}