ArticleJournal of translational medicine2024
PFC/M1 activation and excitability: a longitudinal cohort study on fatigue symptoms in healthcare workers post-COVID-19.
Article in Journal of translational medicine, 2024. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 5 papers.
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Who cites it
5 citing papers in PubMed.
- Efficacy and cortical mechanisms of repetitive peripheral magnetic stimulation in non-specific neck and low back pain: a prospective, two-center, randomized, sham-controlled fNIRS study.Journal of translational medicine · 2026Trial
- The Analgesic Enhancing Effects of Coupling M1 and PMC rTMS on Neuropathic Pain After Spinal Cord Injury: An fNIRS Study.Pain research & management · 2026Trial
- Prunella vulgaris seed oil alleviates cancer related fatigue through hypothalamic inflammation and CRH regulation.NPJ science of food · 2025Article
- Corticospinal Excitability in Bilateral M1 Hand Areas: Association with Neuropathic Pain After Spinal Cord Injury.Journal of pain research · 2025Article
- The application of fNIRS-sEMG in the study of muscle-brain coupling.Frontiers in neurologyReview
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Authors and funding
13 authors.
Funding
Abstract
backgroundFatigue is one of the most common neurological symptoms reported post coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) infection. In order to establish effective early intervention strategies, more emphasis should be placed on the correlation between fatigue and cortical neurophysiological changes, especially in healthcare workers, who are at a heightened risk of COVID-19 infection.
methodsA prospective cohort study was conducted involving 29 COVID-19 medical workers and 24 healthy controls. The assessment included fatigue, sleep and health quality, psychological status, and physical capacity. Functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) was employed to detect activation of brain regions. Bilateral primary motor cortex (M1) excitabilities were measured using single- and paired-pulse transcranial magnetic stimulation. Outcomes were assessed at 1, 3, and 6 months into the disease course.
resultsAt 1-month post-COVID-19 infection, 37.9% of patients experienced severe fatigue symptoms, dropping to 10.3% at 3 months. Interestingly, the remarkable decreased activation/excitability of bilateral prefrontal lobe (PFC) and M1 were closely linked to fatigue symptoms after COVID-19. Notably, greater increase in M1 region excitability correlated with more significant fatigue improvement. Re-infected patients exhibited lower levels of brain activation and excitability compared to single-infection patients.
conclusionsBoth single infection and reinfection of COVID-19 lead to decreased activation and excitability of the PFC and M1. The degree of excitability improvement in the M1 region correlates with a greater recovery in fatigue. Based on these findings, targeted interventions to enhance and regulate the excitability of M1 may represent a novel strategy for COVID-19 early rehabilitation.
trial registrationThe Ethics Review Committee of Xijing Hospital, No. KY20232051-F-1; www.chictr.org.cn , ChiCTR2300068444.
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