Determination of COVID-19 Related Virus in Central Nervous System

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a highly infectious pandemic disease caused by SARS-CoV-2 virus. Central Nervous System (CNS) complications associated with COVID-19 might be secondary sequelae due to exuberant systemic innate-mediated hyper-inflammation, which may impair neurovascular endothelial function, disrupt blood brain barrier (BBB), activates CNS innate immune signaling pathways, and induces parainfectious autoimmunity, potentially contributing to the CNS manifestations. Although the predominant clinical manifestation of SARS-CoV-2 is characterized by dyspnea, unremitting fever and hypoxemic respiratory failure, neurologic manifestations do occur in most hospitalized SARS-CoV-2 patients and include non-specific encephalopathy, psychosis, meningitis/encephalitis, myelitis, cerebrovascular events, Guillain-Barre' syndrome, and cranial or peripheral neuropathies, such as anosmia and ageusia. To date, data about primary CNS involvement due to neurotropism and direct neuroinvasion are still lacking.