Moghimi, Narges, Di Napoli, Mario, Biller, José et al. · Current neurology and neuroscience reports · 2021 · DOI
This review examined what we know about how COVID-19 can affect the nervous system in people who experience long-term symptoms after infection (called PASC or long COVID). The researchers looked at published studies to understand how common these neurological problems are, who is most at risk, why they happen, and how they might be treated. They found that long COVID can range from mild to severely disabling symptoms that last weeks or longer, and that multiple factors—including lingering inflammation, immune system problems, and possible viral effects on the brain—may play a role.
Understanding the neurological mechanisms of post-viral sequelae like PASC is critical for ME/CFS research, as both conditions share overlapping symptoms and unclear pathophysiology. This review consolidates evidence about potential mechanisms—immune dysregulation, chronic inflammation, and possible viral persistence—that may apply to ME/CFS patients as well. Early identification and multidisciplinary treatment approaches outlined here could inform clinical management strategies for patients with post-viral conditions.
This review does not prove that any single mechanism causes neuro-PASC; it summarizes multiple proposed theories without establishing which are primary. The paper does not demonstrate that PASC and ME/CFS are identical conditions, though they share features. It also cannot establish causation from the published studies reviewed—most demonstrate associations rather than definitive causal pathways.
About the PEM badge: “PEM required” means post-exertional malaise was an explicit required diagnostic criterion for participant inclusion in this study — not that PEM was studied, observed, or discussed. Studies using criteria that do not require PEM (e.g. Fukuda, Oxford) are tagged “PEM not required”. How the atlas works →
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