COVID-19 and its aftereffect on vestibular function

BACKGROUND: The pandemic has led to a development of various immunological complications of COVID-19 including the chronic fatigue syndrome and fibromyalgia. These syndromes, which often manifest themselves on a background of autoimmune diseases, may develop with an entrainment of vestibular function into the pathological process.

AIM: Aim of the study was to estimate vestibular function in groups of patients with autoimmune dysfunctions accompanied by the chronic fatigue syndrome and fibromyalgia, who have had COVID-19 and those have not had COVID-19 in their anamnesis, and to compare it with vestibular function of healthy volunteers.

MATERIALS AND METHODS: A functional investigation of vestibular system called “Vestibular passport” and the anamnesis taking by a standard questionnaire were performed in patients with an implied autoimmune dysfunction and presence of the chronic fatigue syndrome, fibromyalgia and/or postural orthostatic tachycardia, and also for a control group of healthy participants.

RESULTS: Patients who have had COVID-19 in their anamnesis demonstrated significantly higher percentage of cases of vestibulopathy than healthy volunteers (33 and 6 %, respectively). In patients without COVID-19 in their anamnesis the percentage of vestibulopathy cases did not differ significantly from the corresponding percentage in healthy volunteers (14 and 6 %, respectively). Patients’ complaints which indicate a vestibular pathology were confirmed in 2/3 of all cases.

CONCLUSIONS: Patients with chronic fatigue syndrome and fibromyalgia who have had COVID-19 were more prone to vestibulopathies than patients without COVID-19 in their anamnesis, whose vestibular indices did not differ from that in healthy volunteers. The data obtained shoul be considered as preliminary.