Experts now warn that COVID-19 can do lasting damage to the brain, causing inflammation, memory loss, increased dementia risk, and triggering psychiatric symptoms like hallucinations, paranoia, and severe depression. It can even disrupt the brain’s control over vital functions like heart rate and blood pressure (Harvard Health Publishing, 2023). Below you’ll find our library of studies regarding COVID-19’s impact on the brain, including its neurological, psychological, and long-term effects.
The * icon indicates peer-reviewed studies.
* How COVID-19 Affects the Brain JAMA Psychiatry, June 1, 2021. Boldrini M, Canoll PD, Klein RS
* Changes in Memory and Cognition During the SARS-CoV-2 Human Challenge Study E Clinical Medicine Volume 76. Trender, W., Hellyer, J.P. et al. October, 2024
*Brainstem Damage Could Explain Long COVID Symptoms, Precision MRI Shows Medical News Today, Oct 10, 2024
Is Covid Rewriting the Rules of Aging? Brain Decline Alarms Doctors. Wall Street Journal, April 14, 2025
*Multimodal MRI analysis of COVID-19 Effects on Pediatric Brain Scientific Reports Journal, April 5, 2025, Peng, T., Zhang, C., Xie, P. et al
COVID-19 Leaves Its Mark on the Brain. Significant Drops in IQ Scores Are Noted, Scientific American, March 13, 2024
Does COVID-19 damage the brain? Harvard Health, March 1, 2023
*Posthospitalization COVID-19 Cognitive Deficits at 1 Year are Global and Associated with Elevated Brain Injury Markers and Gray Matter Volume Reduction Nature Medicine, September 23, 2024, Wood, G.K., Sargent, B.F., Ahmad, ZUA. et al
*Long-Term Effects of SARS-CoV-2 in the Brain: Clinical Consequences and Molecular Mechanisms J Clin Med, April 28, 2023, Granholm AC
Long COVID and the Brain: Global Study Links Infection to Memory Loss, Higher Dementia Risk in Seniors UT Health San Antonio, Feb 11, 2025
Study Sheds New Light on Severe COVID’s Long-Term Brain Impacts CIDRAP, September 24, 2024
How COVID-19 Leaves Its Mark on the Brain News GP, Dr. Ziyad Al-Aly, March 8, 2024
*Cognition and Memory after Covid-19 in a Large Community Sample New England Journal of Medicine, Feb 28, 2024, Hampshire, Adam, Azor, Adriana Azor. et al
Even Mild COVID Cases Leave Lasting Brain Changes in Young Adults Psychiatrist.com, October 8, 2024
Dementia and Coronavirus Risk Alzheimers Society, n.d.
Cognitive deficits after COVID-19 Associated with Brain Injury Biomarkers and volume loss Nature Medicine Journal , November 25, 2025
Ultra-powered MRI Scans Show Damage to Brain’s ‘Control Centre’ is Behind Long-Lasting Covid-19 Symptoms University of Cambridge, October 8, 2024
COVID Survivors May Develop Dementia Nature India Journal , October 21, 2024
From Blood Clots to Infected Neurons, How COVID Threatens the Brain NPR News, Dec 16, 2021
Mild COVID Linked to Brain Damage: What That Means for You Dr. Mark Allen, Ph.D., July 16, 2024