Neurological Manifestations and Comorbidities in Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) Patients: Multicenter Study

Abstract

Objective: The novel severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) virus, responsible for the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, originated in China and swiftly spread globally, resulting in significant mortality worldwide. We aimed to create an overview of the significant symptoms, clinical indicators, and concurrent comorbidities observed in COVID-19 patients that require hospitalization and neurology consultation, adversely affecting the severe course of the disease and leading to mortality.

Materials and methods: We designed our study as a multicenter and cross-sectional survey, which was conducted with patients hospitalized in seven medical centers in Türkiye over six months.

Results: A cohort of 504 patients diagnosed with COVID-19 were included in the study. In terms of the complaints at the time of admission, high fever (48%), cough (45%), sore throat (23%), and diarrhea (9%) were the most common symptoms expressed by the patients. The most commonly observed symptoms included myalgia (55%), headache (46%), loss of taste (46%), and loss of smell (39%). Furthermore, 68 patients (13.5%) within the cohort had a history of neurological diseases, distributed as follows: cerebrovascular attack (4%), migraine (2.8%), extrapyramidal disease (1.8%), dementia (1%), polyneuropathy (1%), epilepsy (0.6%), and demyelinating disease (0.6%). In the logistic regression analysis, key factors affecting mortality were identified as body mass index and age.

Conclusion: The most common complaints in COVID-19 patients were high fever and sore throat. Fatigue, myalgia, headache, loss of smell, and taste were the most common symptoms. Accompanying comorbid diseases increased the severity of COVID-19 disease. Advanced age and body mass index were effective factors on mortality.

Keywords: Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19); comorbidity; mortality; neurological symptoms; prognosis.

Figure 1

Distribution of symptoms by disease severity.

Figure 2

Distribution of symptoms by the disease course of Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) in surviving and deceased patients. CVD: Cerebrovascular disease; CHF: Congestive heart failure; HT: Hypertension; CHD: Coronary heart disease; CRF: Chronic renal failure; COPD: Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.