Brain scans reveal widespread structural and functional changes in patients following COVID-19 infection

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Brain scans reveal widespread structural and functional changes in patients following COVID-19 infection

by<br>Karina Petrova

August 8, 2026

Reading Time: 4 mins read

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A recent review of 49 brain imaging studies reveals that COVID-19 is associated with widespread structural and functional changes in the human brain. The findings indicate that the virus affects regions responsible for memory, emotion, and executive function, which may help explain the neurological symptoms many patients experience. The research was published in the journal Cerebral Cortex.

Following the initial outbreak of the coronavirus, many patients began reporting enduring neurological issues, such as brain fog, fatigue, and memory loss. A team of scientists led by researchers Li Chen, Huan Lan, and Wenxiong Liu synthesized data from existing medical studies to build a comprehensive picture of how the virus impacts the central nervous system. They focused on research utilizing magnetic resonance imaging, a technology that uses strong magnetic fields to generate detailed maps of the brain’s internal anatomy and activity.

To evaluate the extent of the damage, the researchers looked at different types of brain tissue. Gray matter consists of the brain’s neuron cell bodies, which process information, while white matter contains the nerve fibers that connect these processing centers. Functional imaging techniques measure blood flow or oxygen levels to track how different brain areas communicate in real time.

The research team conducted a systematic review, gathering 49 previously published studies that compared the brain scans of people who had contracted COVID-19 with those of healthy individuals. These studies included patients in various stages of the disease, ranging from acute infection to long-term recovery. Some of the individual studies were small, involving as few as 10 participants, while others evaluated more than 200 patients.

By pooling the results, the researchers identified consistent patterns of abnormalities across several key brain regions. The frontal lobe, which handles decision-making and cognitive control, frequently showed structural changes. The temporal and parietal lobes, areas involved in sensory processing and attention, also exhibited noticeable differences in patients who had recovered from the virus.

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Structural changes in the frontal lobe might explain the loss of top-down cognitive control observed in some patients. The researchers note that the prefrontal cortex is highly sensitive to psychosocial stress. This means the stress of the pandemic itself, alongside the biological infection, might contribute to these structural shifts.

The temporal lobe includes areas like Heschl’s gyrus, a region that processes auditory information. Patients recovering from COVID-19 often experience difficulties processing sound, which can contribute to chronic fatigue as the brain works harder during daily listening activities. The parietal lobe, a region involved in visual and spatial attention, also showed structural changes linked to impaired attention allocation.

In many of these regions, COVID-19 patients displayed a reduction in overall gray matter volume and a thinning of the outer cortical layer. This tissue loss could result from reduced oxygen supply or severe immune system inflammation during the infection. Conversely, a few studies reported localized increases in gray matter volume. The researchers suggest this could represent temporary swelling caused by vascular injury, or it could be the brain’s attempt to compensate for damaged tissue by growing new neural connections.

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The review highlighted extensive structural issues in the brain’s white matter. To measure this, scientists track the microscopic diffusion of water molecules along nerve fibers. In COVID-19 patients, this water movement was often abnormal, indicating that the protective coating around the nerve fibers had degraded. These microscopic changes were present even in patients who experienced only mild to moderate respiratory symptoms and had otherwise normal-looking gray matter on standard medical scans.

Functional imaging scans revealed altered patterns of spontaneous brain activity. When patients were simply resting in the scanner, their brains showed abnormal synchronization between different regions. The limbic system, a network of deep brain structures including the insula, hippocampus, and amygdala, frequently exhibited connectivity issues. Because these areas regulate emotion and memory, functional disruptions here often...