What can the neurological manifestations of COVID-19 tell us: a meta-analysis

Abstract

Abstract Background Covid-19 became a global pandemic in 2019. Studies have shown that coronavirus can cause neurological symptoms, but clinical studies on its neurological symptoms are limited. In this meta-analysis, we aimed to summarize the various neurological manifestations that occurred in COVID-19 patients and calculate the incidence of various neurological manifestations. At the same time, we further explored the mechanism of nervous system injury and prognosis in COVID-19 patients in combination with their nervous system manifestations. This study provides a reference for early clinical identification of COVID-19 nervous system injury in the future, so as to achieve early treatment and reduce neurological sequelae. Methods We systematically searched all published English literature related to the neurological manifestations of COVID-19 from January 1, 2020, to April 30, 2021, in Pubmed, Embase, and Cochrane Library. The keywords used were COVID-19 and terminology related to the nervous system performance. All included studies were selected by two independent reviewers using EndNote and NoteExpress software, any disagreement was resolved by consensus or by a third reviewer, and the selected data were then collected for meta-analysis using a random-effects model. Results A total of 168 articles (n = 292,693) were included in the study, and the meta-analysis showed that the most common neurological manifestations of COVID-19 were myalgia(33%; 95%CI 0.30–0.37; I2 = 99.17%), smell impairment(33%; 95%CI 0.28–0.38; I2 = 99.40%), taste dysfunction(33%; 95%CI 0.27–0.39; I2 = 99.09%), altered mental status(32%; 95%CI 0.22–0.43; I2 = 99.06%), headache(29%; 95%CI 0.25–0.33; I2 = 99.42%), encephalopathy(26%; 95%CI 0.16–0.38; I2 = 99.31%), alteration of consciousness(13%; 95%CI 0.08–0.19; I2 = 98.10%), stroke(12%; 95%CI 0.08–0.16; I2 = 98.95%), dizziness(10%; 95%CI 0.08–0.13; I2 = 96.45%), vision impairment(6%; 95%CI 0.03–0.09; I2 = 86.82%), intracerebral haemorrhage(5%; 95%CI 0.03–0.09; I2 = 95.60%), seizure(4%; 95%CI 0.02 -0.05; I2 = 98.15%), encephalitis(2%; 95%CI 0.01–0.03; I2 = 90.36%), Guillan-Barré Syndrome (GBS) (1%; 95%CI 0.00–0.03; I2 = 89.48%). Conclusions Neurological symptoms are common and varied in Covid-19 infections, and a growing number of reports suggest that the prevalence of neurological symptoms may be increasing. In the future, the role of COVID-19 neurological symptoms in the progression of COVID-19 should be further studied, and its pathogenesis and assessment methods should be explored, to detect and treat early neurological complications of COVID-19 and reduce mortality.