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. 2024 May 27:15:1382875.
doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2024.1382875. eCollection 2024.

Poor sleep quality may trigger cognitive deficits after recovery from COVID-19

A Carnes-Vendrell  1 , G Piñol-Ripoll  1 , M Ariza  2 , N Cano  2   3 , B Segura  4   5   6   7 , C Junque  4   5   6   7 , J Béjar  8 , C Barrue  8 , M Garolera  2   9 ; Nautilus Project Collaborative Group
Collaborators, Affiliations

Poor sleep quality may trigger cognitive deficits after recovery from COVID-19

A Carnes-Vendrell et al. Front Psychol. .

Abstract

Objective: In the present study, we aimed to assess the cognition of post-COVID-19 condition (PCC) participants in relation to their subjective sleep quality (Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index, PSQI) and to analyse possible moderators of this effect, such as quality of life (European Quality of Life-5 Dimensions, EQ-5D), fatigue (Chadler Fatigue Questionnaire, CFQ), cognitive reserve (Cognitive Reserve Questionnaire, CRC), and subjective cognitive complaints (Memory Failures of Everyday Questionnaire, MFE-30).

Methods: We included 373 individuals with PCC and 126 healthy controls (HCs) from the NAUTILUS Project (NCT05307549 and NCT05307575) who were assessed with a comprehensive neuropsychological battery and various questionnaires.

Results: We found that PCC participants with poor sleep quality had a 4.3% greater risk of immediate verbal memory deficits than those with good sleep quality, as indicated by the greater odds ratio (OR) of 1.043 and confidence interval (CI) of 1.023-1.063. Additionally, their risk of immediate verbal memory disorders was multiplied by 2.4 when their EQ-5D score was low (OR 0.33; CI 0.145-0.748), and they had a lower risk of delayed visual memory deficits with a greater CRC (OR 0.963; CI 0.929-0.999). With respect to processing speed, PCC participants with poor sleep quality had a 6.7% greater risk of deficits as the MFE increased (OR 1.059; CI 1.024-1.096), and the risk of slowed processing speed tripled with a lower EQ-5D (OR 0.021; CI 0.003-0.141).

Conclusion: These results indicate that poor subjective sleep quality is a potential trigger for cognitive deficits. Therapeutic strategies to maximize sleep quality could include reducing sleep disturbances and perhaps cognitive impairment in PCC individuals.

Keywords: COVID-19; cognition; cognitive reserve; fatigue; post-COVID-19 condition; quality of life; sleep quality; subjective cognitive complaints.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
ROC curves for moderators between sleep quality and cognition in PCC patients. (A) Shows the combined effect of MFE-30 and EQ-5D moderations on the relationship between sleep quality and RAVLT immediate recall performance. (B) Shows the combined effect of CRC moderations on the relationship between sleep quality and ROCF delayed recall performance. (C) Shows the combined effect of MFE- 30 and CRC moderations on the relationship between sleep quality and digit symbol performance. (D) Shows the combined effect of MFE- 30 and EQ-5D moderations on the relationship between sleep quality and digit symbol performance. (E) Shows the combined effect of MFE-30 and EQ-5D moderations on the relationship between sleep quality and ROCF delayed recall performance. (F) Shows the combined effect of MFE-30 and CRC moderations on the relationship between sleep quality and digit symbol performance.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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