Mild Covid-19 can still cause attention and memory issues, UK study finds
- An Oxford University research found people experienced chronic cognitive consequences for months after infection
- The findings also revealed individuals over time showed episodic memory and attention span largely returned to normal after six and nine months, respectively
Cognitive issues impacting concentration levels, along with forgetfulness and fatigue, are features of long Covid – a condition that afflicts some after an initial bout of infection – but it has not been established how widespread issues with attention span might be following Covid-19 infection.
In the study, participants who had tested positive for Covid-19 previously but did not report other traditional long Covid symptoms were asked to complete exercises to test their memory and cognitive ability.
The researchers found that participants were significantly worse at recalling personal experiences, known as episodic memory, up to six months after infection.
They also had a bigger decline in their ability to sustain attention over time than uninfected individuals up to nine months after infection.
“What is surprising is that although our Covid-19 survivors did not feel any more symptomatic at the time of testing, they showed degraded attention and memory,” said Dr Sijia Zhao of the Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Oxford.