SARS-CoV-2 Infection: Symptoms of the Nervous System and Implications for Therapy in Neurological Disorders

Abstract

In this paper, the neurological aspects of COVID-19 are presented, which may be of significance for physicians. Knowledge about the neurological symptoms of COVID-19 infection should help physicians in diagnoses and in taking appropriate precautions, as some manifestations can appear before typical pulmonary symptoms. Various mechanisms of SARS-CoV-2 neuroinvasion are discussed and symptoms are described, which can be subdivided into manifestations of the central nervous system (CNS) (headache, dizziness, stroke, impaired consciousness, encephalitis, meningitis, seizures) and peripheral nervous system (PNS) (characteristic hyposmia and hypogeusia, Guillain Barré syndrome, myalgia). Additionally, the implications of COVID-19 infection for treatment of patients with common neurological diseases and their management is presented. It can be concluded that neurological symptoms are part of a clinical spectrum of COVID-19 infection, involving the CNS and PNS. COVID-19 may influence decisions regarding the treatment of neurological disorders, especially those with an immune background.

Keywords: COVID-19; Influence on therapy; Neuroinvasive mechanisms; Neurological symptoms; SARS-CoV-2 infection.

Fig. 1

Structure of SARS-CoV-2 virus. s spike protein, m membrane protein, e envelope protein, n nucleoprotein