# Following severe, moderate or mild infection
The COVID-19 infection, even in its mild or moderate respiratory forms, can lead to neuropsychological deficits. The COVID-COG project (NRP 78 2020-2023, n°: 4078P0_198438) was implemented during the first wave of the COVID pandemic, in response to the questioning at the time concerning the impact that an infection could have on neuropsychological abilities. The original project featured an exhaustive neuropsychological evaluation, as well as MRI, olfactory and neurological assessments, administered 6-9 months and 12-15 months post infection, which allowed our research team to confirm the presence of cognitive dicturbances in the short-term following SARS-CoV-2 infection. These results have since been reinforced by numerous other studies worldwide, revealing that 6 months post-infection, 35.4% of people still display cognitive impairment, and 53% have chronic fatigue, referring to this syndrome as the post-COVID condition. While several hypotheses have been put forward to explain the persistence of these neurocognitive symptoms, many questions remain unanswered, notably the evolution of these impairments in the long-term. As a follow-up to the COVID-COG project, the ongoing TREJECTORY project (SNSF 2023-2027, n°: 220041) aims to track the longitudinal evolution of patients 3 and 5 years after the acute phase of COVID-19.
Our projects are realized in collaboration with eight departments of the University Hospitals of Geneva, the Leenaards Memory Centre at the Lausanne University Hospital and the Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne.
Frédéric Assal (Co-PI)
Neurology Department, Geneva University Hospitals, Switzerland
Faculty of Medicine, University of Geneva, Switzerland
Dan Adler
Division of Pulmonary Diseases, Geneva University Hospitals, Switzerland
Gilles Allali
Leenaards Memory Center, Lausanne University Hospital and University of Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland
Lamyae Benzakour
Faculty of Medicine, University of Geneva, Switzerland
Psychiatry Department, Geneva University Hospitals, Switzerland
Olivia Braillard
Division and Department of Primary Care Medicine, Geneva University Hospitals, Switzerland
Gautier Breville
Neurology Department, Geneva University Hospitals, Switzerland
Faculty of Medicine, University of Geneva, Switzerland
Matteo Coen
Faculty of Medicine, University of Geneva, Switzerland
Internal Medicine Department, Geneva University Hospitals, Switzerland
Alessandra Griffa
Faculty of Medicine, University of Geneva, Switzerland
Institute of Bioengineering, Center for Neuroprosthetics, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Lausanne, Switzerland
Idris Guessous
Faculty of Medicine, University of Geneva, Switzerland
Division and Department of Primary Care Medicine, Geneva University Hospitals, Switzerland
Patrice H. Lalive
Neurology Department, Geneva University Hospitals, Switzerland
Faculty of Medicine, University of Geneva, Switzerland
Basile N. Landis
Faculty of Medicine, University of Geneva, Switzerland
Rhinology-Olfactology Unit, Otorhinolaryngology Department, Geneva University Hospitals, Switzerland
Karl-Olof Lövblad
Faculty of Medicine, University of Geneva, Switzerland
Diagnostic and Interventional Neuroradiology Department, Geneva University Hospitals, Switzerland
Mayssam Nehme
Division and Department of Primary Care Medicine, Geneva University Hospitals, Switzerland
Radek Ptak
Faculty of Medicine, University of Geneva, Switzerland
Neurorehabilitation Department, Geneva University Hospitals, 1205 Geneva, Switzerland
Jérôme Pugin
Faculty of Medicine, University of Geneva, Switzerland
Intensive Care Department, Geneva University Hospitals, Switzerland
Jean-Luc Reny
Division of General Internal Medicine, Department of Medicine, Geneva University Hospitals and Geneva University, Switzerland
Jacques Serratrice
Faculty of Medicine, University of Geneva, Switzerland
Internal Medicine Department, Geneva University Hospitals, Switzerland
Dimitri Van De Ville
Faculty of Medicine, University of Geneva, Switzerland
Institute of Bioengineering, Center for Neuroprosthetics, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Lausanne, Switzerland
Swiss National Science Foundation, UNIGE
"Longitudinal evolution of cognitive functions following SARS-CoV-2 infection: factors of chronicization" (2023-2027)
Grant N°: 220041
Swiss National Science Foundation, UNIGE
"Short and long-term neuropsychological impairment following COVID-19"
NRP 78 "Covid-19" – 2020 - 2023
Grant N°: 4078P0_198438
The newest recommendations from the Swiss Federal Office of Public Health (FOPH) for primary care physicians regarding the diagnostic and treatment of the post-COVID-19 condition can be found on the Altea (FOPH) and RAFAEL (HUG) platforms.