An immersive virtual reality-based object-location memory task reveals spatial long-term memory alterations in Long-COVID.
Behav Brain Res
; 471: 115127, 2024 Aug 05.
Article
in En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-38936427
ABSTRACT
Object-location memory (OLM) is a type of declarative memory for spatial information and consists of the individual's ability to establish accurate associations between objects and their spatial locations. Long-COVID describes the long-term effects of the COVID-19 disease. Long-COVID patients show medial temporal lobe dysfunction and neuropsychological alterations affecting memory. This study aimed to assess OLM in a group of Long-COVID patients, n=66, and a Control group of healthy individuals with similar age and sex composition, n=21, using an immersive virtual reality (iVR)-based OLM task. We also explored associations between the performance in the iVR-based OLM task and general cognitive function (MoCA), and both verbal (VSTM) and visuospatial (SSTM) span. The Long-COVID group showed fewer correct responses, made more task attempts, and invested more time in the iVR-based OLM task than the Control group. Delayed memory was more severely altered than immediate memory in Long-COVID participants. Better MoCA scores of the Long-COVID group were strongly associated with shorter times to complete the immediate recall of the iVR-based OLM task. Besides, the months elapsed since the COVID-19 infection were slightly associated with fewer correct responses in the immediate and 24-hour recalls. These results corroborate previous findings of memory alterations in the Long-COVID syndrome using an iVR-based OLM task, adding new evidence on spatial memory and long-term memory in this population. Implementing spatial iVR tasks to clinical research may improve our understanding of neuropsychological disorders.
Key words
Full text:
1
Collection:
01-internacional
Database:
MEDLINE
Main subject:
Memory, Long-Term
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Spatial Memory
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Virtual Reality
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COVID-19
Limits:
Adult
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Aged
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Female
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Humans
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Male
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Middle aged
Language:
En
Journal:
Behav Brain Res
Year:
2024
Document type:
Article