코로나바이러스 감염증(COVID-19) 회복 노인 및 신경인지장애 환자들의 잔존 신경정신과적 영향에 대한 고찰

Residual Neuropsychiatric Sequelae of the Elderly and Neurocognitive Disorder Patients Who Recovered from Coronavirus Infection (COVID-19) : A review

Among COVID-19 survivors, residual fatigue, emotional symptoms, and cognitive problems have been reported persistently. These neuropsychiatric sequelae have been regarded as the main symptom of post-COVID-19 syndrome (PCS), which is considered significant in the elderly and patients with cognitive decline. Among the reviewed studies, increasing age was considered a significant risk factor for PCS development. In addition, various studies have reported social isolation, persistent mourning disorder after experiencing loss, cognitive decline, and increased psychological stress in the caregivers as the COVID-19 pandemic and social measures such as social distancing prolong. These factors may be causes of the vulnerable environment of the elderly population during the long-term COVID-19 pandemic. The subjective cognitive decline that persists after recovery may not correlate with COVID-19 severity, but the severity of cognitive decline is associated with the COVID-19 severity. In addition, cognitive dysfunction may increase the likelihood of hospitalization for COVID-19. A careful evaluation of patients reporting decreased daily living function and quality of life after COVID-19 recovery and further prospective studies are needed using objective cognitive function tests.