Negahi Ahmadagha, Davoodian Parivash, Esmaeili Omid, Nabavi Reza, Khatibzade-Nasari Niloufar, Imeri Mobina
Infectious and Tropical Diseases Research Center Hormozgan Health Institute Hormozgan University of Medical Sciences Bandar Abbas Iran.
Student Research Committee University of Medical Sciences Bandar Abbas Iran.
Health Sci Rep. 2025 Apr 18;8(4):e70723. doi: 10.1002/hsr2.70723. eCollection 2025 Apr.
Neurological manifestations are increasingly recognized in COVID-19 patients, yet their prevalence and clinical significance remain understudied. This study aimed to determine the incidence and significance of neurological symptoms and their associations with demographic, clinical, and laboratory parameters in hospitalized COVID-19 patients.
A cross-sectional study was conducted at Shahid Mohammadi Hospital, Bandar Abbas, Iran, from February 2020 to February 2021. A total of 540 RT-PCR-confirmed COVID-19 patients were included. Data on demographics, comorbidities, clinical symptoms, neurological manifestations (e.g., myalgia, headache, smell/taste impairment, dizziness), and laboratory findings were collected. Statistical analyses were performed using SPSS version 20.
Myalgia was the most common neurological symptom (33.9%), followed by headache (16.7%), smell/taste impairment (10.2%), and dizziness (6.9%). A significantly higher prevalence of myalgia and smell/taste impairment was observed in patients under 50 years old ( ≤ 0.05). Patients with myalgia also had a significantly higher prevalence of prior chronic heart disease and were more likely to experience concurrent smell/taste impairment ( ≤ 0.05). Notably, while some inflammatory markers were elevated in both patients with and without myalgia and smell/taste impairment, the increase was significantly less pronounced in those exhibiting these neurological symptoms ( ≤ 0.05). Additionally, patients with headache and smell/taste impairment were less frequently admitted to the ICU ( ≤ 0.05). A statistically significant co-occurrence was also observed among the presence of headache, dizziness, and smell/taste impairment in COVID-19 patients ( ≤ 0.05).
Neurological symptoms are prevalent in COVID-19 patients and may serve as markers of disease severity and progression. Recognizing these manifestations can aid in early diagnosis and inform tailored management strategies. Further research with larger, diverse populations and advanced diagnostic tools is needed to validate these findings and better understand the mechanisms underlying COVID-19-related neurological involvement.
新冠病毒病（COVID-19）患者的神经学表现越来越受到关注，但其患病率和临床意义仍有待深入研究。本研究旨在确定住院COVID-19患者神经症状的发生率和意义，以及它们与人口统计学、临床和实验室参数之间的关联。
2020年2月至2021年2月在伊朗阿巴斯港的沙希德·穆罕默迪医院进行了一项横断面研究。共纳入540例经逆转录聚合酶链反应（RT-PCR）确诊的COVID-19患者。收集了人口统计学、合并症、临床症状、神经学表现（如肌痛、头痛、嗅觉/味觉障碍、头晕）和实验室检查结果等数据。使用SPSS 20版进行统计分析。
肌痛是最常见的神经症状（33.9%），其次是头痛（16.7%）、嗅觉/味觉障碍（10.2%）和头晕（6.9%）。50岁以下患者的肌痛和嗅觉/味觉障碍患病率显著更高（P≤0.05）。肌痛患者既往慢性心脏病的患病率也显著更高，且更易同时出现嗅觉/味觉障碍（P≤0.05）。值得注意的是，无论有无肌痛和嗅觉/味觉障碍，部分炎症标志物均有升高，但有这些神经症状的患者升高幅度明显较小（P≤0.05）。此外，头痛和嗅觉/味觉障碍患者入住重症监护病房（ICU）的频率较低（P≤0.05）。COVID-19患者中头痛、头晕和嗅觉/味觉障碍同时出现的情况也具有统计学意义（P≤0.05）。
神经症状在COVID-19患者中普遍存在，可能是疾病严重程度和进展的标志物。认识这些表现有助于早期诊断并为制定针对性的管理策略提供依据。需要开展更大规模、更多样化人群以及采用先进诊断工具的进一步研究，以验证这些发现并更好地理解COVID-19相关神经受累的潜在机制。
