Preserved perception-action integration in adolescents after a COVID-19 infection

Research output: Contribution to journalResearch articleContributedpeer-review

Contributors

Abstract

Evidence is accumulating that the Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) can bring forth deficits in executive functioning via alterations in the dopaminergic system. Importantly, dopaminergic pathways have been shown to modulate how actions and perceptions are integrated within the brain. Such alterations in event file binding could thus underlie the cognitive deficits developing after a COVID-19 infection. We examined action-perception integration in a group of young people (11-19 years of age) that had been infected with COVID-19 before study participation (n = 34) and compared them to a group of uninfected healthy controls (n = 29) on the behavioral (i.e., task accuracy, reaction time) and neurophysiological (EEG) level using an established event file binding paradigm. Groups did not differ from each other regarding demographic variables or in reporting psychiatric symptoms. Overall, multiple lines of evidence (behavioral and neurophysiological) suggest that action-perception integration is preserved in adolescents who suffered from COVID-19 prior to study participation. Event file binding processes were intact in both groups on all levels. While cognitive impairments can occur following a COVID-19 infection, the study demonstrates that action-perception integration as one of the basic building blocks of cognition seems to be largely unaffected in adolescents with a rather mild course of the disease.

Details

Original languageEnglish
Article number13287
Number of pages14
JournalScientific Reports
Volume13
Issue number1
Publication statusPublished - 16 Aug 2023
Peer-reviewedYes

External IDs

Scopus 85168251983
PubMed 37587175
ORCID /0000-0002-2989-9561/work/146788790

Keywords

ASJC Scopus subject areas

Keywords

  • Humans, Adolescent, COVID-19, Cognition Disorders, Cognitive Dysfunction, Brain, Dopamine, Perception

Library keywords