Eur J Neurol . Functional Disorders as a Common Motor Manifestation of COVID-19 Infection or Vaccination

[tetano]

Eur J Neurol


. 2022 Nov 11.
doi: 10.1111/ene.15630. Online ahead of print.
Functional Disorders as a Common Motor Manifestation of COVID-19 Infection or Vaccination


Wilson K W Fung ¹ , Qais Sa'di ¹ , Hans Katzberg ^{2 3} , Robert Chen ^{1 2 3} , Anthony E Lang ^{1 2 3} , Angela M Cheung ^{4 5} , Alfonso Fasano ^{1 2 3}



Affiliations

• PMID: 36366936
• DOI: 10.1111/ene.15630

Abstract

Introduction: There have been over 500 million confirmed cases of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2), also known as coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), across the globe. To date, a broad spectrum of neurological manifestations following acute infections as well as COVID-19 vaccines have been reported. This study aims to describe the spectrum of neurological manifestations seen in the 'COVID-19 clinic' established in a tertiary Movement Disorders clinic.
Methods: In this consecutive case-series study over the period March 2020-January 2022, clinical information regarding demographic data, clinical history and examination findings, investigation results and video recordings of outpatients with motor manifestations associated with COVID-19 infection or vaccination were reviewed.
Results: Twenty-one adult patients were reviewed in this ad-hoc clinic at Toronto Western Hospital. The majority of the patients were female (76%) and the average age was 50.7±17.2 years (range: 21-80 years). Nine patients (43%) presented with motor manifestations following COVID-19 infection. Twelve patients (57%) developed neurological symptoms following at least one dose of the mRNA or viral vector-based COVID-19 vaccine. The most common manifestation observed was a functional movement disorder (43%). The vaccine group demonstrated a higher number of functional disorders compared to the infection group (58% vs 22%, p=0.08).
Discussion: Functional motor manifestations can be associated with COVID-19 and are likely to be under reported. In view of the co-existence of functional symptoms, movement disorders and mental health conditions observed in this study, we would advocate the use of dedicated COVID-19 Neurology clinics with full access to an experienced multidisciplinary team.

Keywords: COVID-19; Functional; Movement Disorders; SARS-CoV-2; Vaccine.