Neurological complications associated with coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19): MRI features

Hazzaa, Neven Moustafa

Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-COV-2) is an RNA virus, which is a strain of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome-related CoronaVirus (SARSr-CoV), of Coronavirus family. On 31 December 2019, a cluster of cases of unknown pneumonia in Wuhan-China was reported to the World Health Organization (WHO) that subsequently spreading as coronavirus disease 2019-(COVID-19) pandemic worldwide. On 12 January 2020, novel SARS-COV-2 was declared the cause of COVID-19 from the initial analysis of the virus genetic sequences obtained from lower respiratory tract specimen of 41 patients admitted to a designated hospital in Wuhan. The classical COVID-19 presentation is respiratory symptoms. Neuroradiological findings were reported. Our aim is to document neurological complication of COVID-19. We observed confirmed 23 COVID-19 patients presented with severe neurological symptoms. Brain-MRI showed predominately; cerebrovascular thromboembolism-related acute infarcts, autoimmune-meningoencephalitis, Acute disseminated encephalomyelitis (ADEM)-like white matter lesions. CONCLUSION: Different neurological presentations are associated with COVID-19, necessitating further studies to clarify the mechanism of its CNS involvement.