COVID-19 associated nervous system manifestations

The novel coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome corona-virus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), has caused a global pandemic in the last year. Along with major respiratory distress, a myriad of neurological manifestations was also reported to be associated with COVID-19 patients. These cases indicate that SARS-CoV-2 can be considered as an opportunistic pathogen of the brain. SARS-CoV-2 enters the brain through the olfactory bulb, retrograde axonal transport from pe-ripheral nerve endings, or via hematogenous or lymphatic routes. Notably, COVID-19 infection can cause or even present with different neurological features including encephalopathy, impaired consciousness, confusion, agitation, seizure, ataxia, headache, anosmia, ageusia, neuropathies, and neurodegenerative diseases. In this paper, we provide a brief review of observed neurological manifestations associated with COVID-19.(c) 2021 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Automated summary

COVID-19 infection is associated with a variety of neurological manifestations, suggesting that SARS-CoV-2 can act as an opportunistic pathogen of the brain.