Evidence map›Paper›PMID 40600171›Full record

ArticleIBRO neuroscience reports2025

Cognitive functioning in young adults after mild COVID-19: A case-control study from Iran.

Farzad Akbarzadeh, Farhad Faridhosseini, Mahboubeh Eslamzadeh, Mojtaba Ghalandarzadeh, Saeedeh Hajebikhaniki, Alireza Ebrahimi

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in IBRO neuroscience reports, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
1citing papers in PubMed, 1 pooled it
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

1 citing paper in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.

  1. Pooled it
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

6 authors.

Farzad AkbarzadehPsychiatry and Behavioral Sciences Research Center, Mashhad University of Medical Sciences, Mashhad, Iran.
Farhad FaridhosseiniPsychiatry and Behavioral Sciences Research Center, Mashhad University of Medical Sciences, Mashhad, Iran.
Mahboubeh EslamzadehPsychiatry and Behavioral Sciences Research Center, Mashhad University of Medical Sciences, Mashhad, Iran.
Mojtaba GhalandarzadehPsychiatry and Behavioral Sciences Research Center, Mashhad University of Medical Sciences, Mashhad, Iran.
Saeedeh HajebikhanikiDepartment of Biostatistics, Faculty of Health, Mashhad University of Medical Sciences, Mashhad, Iran.
Alireza EbrahimiPsychiatry and Behavioral Sciences Research Center, Mashhad University of Medical Sciences, Mashhad, Iran.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Introduction: Since December 2019, the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) has caused widespread infection across global populations, characterized by its high transmissibility. Despite extensive research on the acute effects of COVID-19, the long-term psychological and neurological sequela remain inadequately explored. This study aimed to investigate cognitive function after COVID-19 infection compared to a control group of non-infected subjects. Methods: This case-control study included 40 individuals who had recovered from COVID-19, referred to Imam Reza Referral and Educational Hospital in Mashhad, Iran, and 40 matched controls who had not experienced COVID-19 symptoms. All participants underwent an initial screening by a psychiatric assistant to exclude significant medical and psychiatric conditions and any history of drug use. A demographic checklist was administered, followed by cognitive assessments using the Stroop Test, Digit Span Test, and Wisconsin Card Sorting Test (WCST). Data were analysed using SPSS Version 20. Results: No significant differences were observed between the two groups regarding age, sex, education level, marital status, or employment status (p > 0.05). However, COVID-19-infected individuals exhibited significantly longer completion times for the congruent Stroop test and increased reaction times compared to healthy controls (p < 0.05). Additionally, the duration for completing the Wisconsin Card Sorting Test was significantly longer in the infected group compared to the non-infected group (p < 0.001). Although the longest digit span and scores on the Digit Span Test were lower in the infected group, these differences did not reach statistical significance (p > 0.05). Furthermore, reaction times in the Continuous Performance Test (CPT) for the first, second, and third sets of 50 stimuli were significantly greater in the COVID-19 group (p < 0.001). Conclusion: This study underscores that cognitive performance post-COVID-19 is adversely affected, particularly in terms of processing speed and sustained attention, when compared to healthy individuals. Further research is warranted to elucidate the underlying mechanisms and to explore potential interventions for cognitive rehabilitation in this population.

Indexed as

AttentionCognitive impairmentCoronavirusProcessing speed

Identifiers

PMID40600171
PMCPMC12209884

What Socratic holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the Socratic graph.