Cognitive remediation therapy for post-acute persistent cognitive deficits in COVID-19 survivors: A proof-of-concept study

Cognitive impairments figure prominently in COVID-19 survivors. Cognitive remediation therapy (CRT) improves functional outcomes reducing long-term cognitive deficits in several neurological and psychiatric conditions. Our case-control study investigates the efficacy of a CRT programme administered to COVID-19 survivors in the post-acute phase of the illness. Seventy-three COVID-19 survivors presenting cognitive impairments at one-month follow-up were enrolled. Among them, 15 patients were treated with a two-month CRT programme, and 30 non-treated patients were matched conditional to their baseline cognitive functioning. Cognitive functions were assessed before and after treatment. Depression and quality of life were also evaluated. Mixed model ANOVA revealed a significant effect over time of the CRT programme on global cognitive functioning (F = 4 .56, p = 0.039), while no significant effect was observed in the untreated group. We observed a significant effect of the improvement in verbal fluency (Chi(2) = 7.20, p = 0.007) and executive functions (Chi(2) = 13.63, p < 0.001) on quality of life. A positive significant correlation was found between depressive symptomatology and verbal fluency (r= -0.35), working memory (r = -0.44), psychomotor coordination (r = -0.42), and executive functions (r = -0.33). Our results could pave the way to a plausible innovative treatment targeting cognitive impairments and ameliorating the quality of life of COVID-19 survivors.