Association between coronavirus 2019 disease and pseudoneurological complaints: analysis of case-control data

Abstract

Aim: Pseudoneurological complaints (PNCs) are highly prevalent among the general population. Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) adversely influences such complaints in individuals who recovered from COVID-19. This study determined the prevalence and identified the predictors of PNCs among individuals who had previously experienced COVID-19 and their healthy counterparts. Methods: This case-control study analyzed the data of 878 Bangladeshi adults (439 patients). Laboratory-confirmed COVID-19 individuals were considered cases, and the controls were those who never tested positive for COVID-19. The controls were matched with cases’ sex and age. The seven-item pseudoneurological sub-scale of the subjective health complaints scale produced by Eriksen et al. evaluated PNCs. The descriptive analysis estimated the prevalence of PNCs among the subgroups, whereas multiple logistic regression models were used to determine the predictors of PNCs. Results: Overall, the prevalence of PNCs was 40%; however, patients who recovered from COVID-19 reported a PNC rate of 67.4%. The regression analysis identified COVID-19 as a robust independent predictor of PNCs. Furthermore, occupation, monthly household income, current living location, hypertension, and recovery period from acute COVID-19 were independently associated with PNCs. Conclusions: This study revealed a significant association between COVID-19 and PNCs. The results of this study will be helpful when discussing, planning, and implementing strategies to alleviate the overburden of PNCs among COVID-19 survivors.