Evidence map›Paper›PMID 42474813›Full record

ArticleMetabolic brain disease2026

Association between COVID-19 infection, elevated C-reactive protein, and neuropsychiatric symptoms in individuals with metabolic and cardiovascular comorbidities.

Gabriel S Mondo, Lucas C Pedro, Camila O Arent, Larissa C Pereira, Jéssica L Fernandes, Amanda L Maciel, Luciane B Ceretta, Zuleide Maria Ignácio, Gislaine Zilli Réus

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Metabolic brain disease, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
0citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

0 citing papers in PubMed.

No citing paper in PubMed yet.

4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

9 authors.

Gabriel S MondoTranslational Psychiatry Laboratory, Graduate Program in Health Sciences, Universidade do Extremo Sul Catarinense (UNESC), Criciúma, SC, Brazil.ORCID 0000-0002-1140-0398
Lucas C PedroTranslational Psychiatry Laboratory, Graduate Program in Health Sciences, Universidade do Extremo Sul Catarinense (UNESC), Criciúma, SC, Brazil.ORCID 0000-0001-6608-7215
Camila O ArentTranslational Psychiatry Laboratory, Graduate Program in Health Sciences, Universidade do Extremo Sul Catarinense (UNESC), Criciúma, SC, Brazil.ORCID 0000-0002-0563-2176
Larissa C PereiraTranslational Psychiatry Laboratory, Graduate Program in Health Sciences, Universidade do Extremo Sul Catarinense (UNESC), Criciúma, SC, Brazil.
Jéssica L FernandesTranslational Psychiatry Laboratory, Graduate Program in Health Sciences, Universidade do Extremo Sul Catarinense (UNESC), Criciúma, SC, Brazil.
Amanda L MacielTranslational Psychiatry Laboratory, Graduate Program in Health Sciences, Universidade do Extremo Sul Catarinense (UNESC), Criciúma, SC, Brazil.ORCID 0000-0002-6182-4893
Luciane B CerettaGraduate Program in Public Health, Universidade do Extremo Sul Catarinense (UNESC), Criciúma, SC, Brazil.ORCID 0000-0003-3294-341X
Zuleide Maria IgnácioLaboratory of Physiology, Pharmacology, and Psychopathology, Graduate Program in Biomedical Sciences, Federal University of the Southern Frontier, Chapecó, SC, Brazil.ORCID 0000-0002-1417-1308
Gislaine Zilli RéusTranslational Psychiatry Laboratory, Graduate Program in Health Sciences, Universidade do Extremo Sul Catarinense (UNESC), Criciúma, SC, Brazil. gislainereus@unesc.net.ORCID 0000-0001-6073-0855

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Elevated serum inflammatory markers are associated with neuropsychiatric symptoms. This process is potentially more intense in individuals with chronic comorbidities such as obesity, systemic arterial hypertension (SAH), and diabetes mellitus (DM). Such conditions already establish a basal inflammatory state, which can be aggravated by acute viral infections, such as COVID-19, worsening neuropsychiatric outcomes. Given this panorama, this cross-sectional study aimed to analyze the association between the presence of pre-existing comorbidities, elevated plasma C-reactive protein (CRP) levels, and symptoms of stress, anxiety, and depression in individuals previously infected by SARS-CoV-2. The research included 350 participants: 114 in the post-COVID-19 group and 236 in the control group. The post-COVID-19 group had a higher prevalence of comorbidities, notably obesity (17.9%; p = 0.044), DM (13.3%; p < 0.01), and SAH (22.1%; p = 0.024). Furthermore, serum CRP levels were significantly higher in the post-COVID-19 group (p = 0.014) and correlated significantly with all comorbidities. The post-COVID-19 group presented higher stress (p = 0.02) and severity of depressive symptoms (p = 0.034). Specifically, the presence of SAH and obesity was associated with a significant increase in stress levels, depression, and anxiety severity (p = 0.027). In conclusion, the results demonstrate that individuals with pre-existing comorbidities, besides being more prevalent in the post-COVID-19 group, exhibit a higher systemic inflammatory state (high CRP), associated with the exacerbation of neuropsychiatric symptoms.

Indexed as

Cardiovascular DiseasesCOVID-19C-Reactive ProteinAdultAgedAnxietyComorbidityCross-Sectional StudiesDepressionDiabetes MellitusFemaleHumansHypertensionMaleMiddle AgedObesityC-Reactive ProteinAnxietyCOVID-19DiabetesInflammationMajor depressive disorderSystemic arterial hypertension

Identifiers

PMID42474813
PMCPMC13385222

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Registered trials

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.