Small Fibre Peripheral Alterations Following COVID-19 Detected by Corneal Confocal Microscopy
A large spectrum of neurological manifestations has been associated with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), and recently, the involvement of small fibers has been suggested. This study aims to investigate the involvement of small peripheral nervous fibers in recovered COVID-19 patients using in-vi...
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MDPI AG
2022-04-01
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| Series: | Journal of Personalized Medicine |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2075-4426/12/4/563 |
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| author | Edoardo Midena Eleonora Cosmo Anna Maria Cattelan Chiara Briani Davide Leoni Alfio Capizzi Vanessa Tabacchi Raffaele Parrozzani Giulia Midena Luisa Frizziero |
| author_facet | Edoardo Midena Eleonora Cosmo Anna Maria Cattelan Chiara Briani Davide Leoni Alfio Capizzi Vanessa Tabacchi Raffaele Parrozzani Giulia Midena Luisa Frizziero |
| author_sort | Edoardo Midena |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | A large spectrum of neurological manifestations has been associated with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), and recently, the involvement of small fibers has been suggested. This study aims to investigate the involvement of small peripheral nervous fibers in recovered COVID-19 patients using in-vivo corneal confocal microscopy (CCM). Patients recovered from COVID-19 and a control group of healthy subjects underwent in-vivo CCM. Corneal nerve fiber density (CNFD), corneal nerve branch density (CNBD), corneal nerve fiber length (CNFL), corneal nerve fiber total branch density (CTBD), corneal nerve fiber area (CNFA), corneal nerve fiber width (CNFW), fiber tortuosity (FT), number of beadings (NBe), and dendritic cells (DC) density were quantified. We enrolled 302 eyes of 151 patients. CNBD and FT were significantly higher (<i>p</i> = 0.0131, <i>p</i> < 0.0001), whereas CNFW and NBe were significantly lower (<i>p</i> = 0.0056, <i>p</i> = 0.0045) in the COVID-19 group compared to controls. Only CNBD and FT resulted significantly correlated to antiviral drugs (increased) and corticosteroids (decreased). No significant relationship with disease severity parameters was found. COVID-19 may induce peripheral neuropathy in small fibers even months after recovery, regardless of systemic conditions and therapy, and CCM may be a useful tool to identify and monitor these morphological changes. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-09T04:30:25Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-08e1d352b8c74dba87759521caee4713 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2075-4426 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-09T04:30:25Z |
| publishDate | 2022-04-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Journal of Personalized Medicine |
| spelling | doaj.art-08e1d352b8c74dba87759521caee47132023-12-03T13:35:11ZengMDPI AGJournal of Personalized Medicine2075-44262022-04-0112456310.3390/jpm12040563Small Fibre Peripheral Alterations Following COVID-19 Detected by Corneal Confocal MicroscopyEdoardo Midena0Eleonora Cosmo1Anna Maria Cattelan2Chiara Briani3Davide Leoni4Alfio Capizzi5Vanessa Tabacchi6Raffaele Parrozzani7Giulia Midena8Luisa Frizziero9Ophthalmology Unit, Department of Neuroscience, University of Padova, 35128 Padova, ItalyIRCCS—Fondazione Bietti, 00198 Rome, ItalyUnit of Infectious Disease, Department of Internal Medicine, University of Padova, 35128 Padova, ItalyNeurology Unit, Department of Neuroscience, University of Padova, 35128 Padova, ItalyUnit of Infectious Disease, Department of Internal Medicine, University of Padova, 35128 Padova, ItalyDepartment of Directional Hospital Management, University of Padova, 35128 Padova, ItalyOphthalmology Unit, Department of Neuroscience, University of Padova, 35128 Padova, ItalyOphthalmology Unit, Department of Neuroscience, University of Padova, 35128 Padova, ItalyIRCCS—Fondazione Bietti, 00198 Rome, ItalyOphthalmology Unit, Department of Neuroscience, University of Padova, 35128 Padova, ItalyA large spectrum of neurological manifestations has been associated with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), and recently, the involvement of small fibers has been suggested. This study aims to investigate the involvement of small peripheral nervous fibers in recovered COVID-19 patients using in-vivo corneal confocal microscopy (CCM). Patients recovered from COVID-19 and a control group of healthy subjects underwent in-vivo CCM. Corneal nerve fiber density (CNFD), corneal nerve branch density (CNBD), corneal nerve fiber length (CNFL), corneal nerve fiber total branch density (CTBD), corneal nerve fiber area (CNFA), corneal nerve fiber width (CNFW), fiber tortuosity (FT), number of beadings (NBe), and dendritic cells (DC) density were quantified. We enrolled 302 eyes of 151 patients. CNBD and FT were significantly higher (<i>p</i> = 0.0131, <i>p</i> < 0.0001), whereas CNFW and NBe were significantly lower (<i>p</i> = 0.0056, <i>p</i> = 0.0045) in the COVID-19 group compared to controls. Only CNBD and FT resulted significantly correlated to antiviral drugs (increased) and corticosteroids (decreased). No significant relationship with disease severity parameters was found. COVID-19 may induce peripheral neuropathy in small fibers even months after recovery, regardless of systemic conditions and therapy, and CCM may be a useful tool to identify and monitor these morphological changes.https://www.mdpi.com/2075-4426/12/4/563corneal confocal microscopyCOVID-19small fiberneuropathycorneaSARS-CoV-2 |
| spellingShingle | Edoardo Midena Eleonora Cosmo Anna Maria Cattelan Chiara Briani Davide Leoni Alfio Capizzi Vanessa Tabacchi Raffaele Parrozzani Giulia Midena Luisa Frizziero Small Fibre Peripheral Alterations Following COVID-19 Detected by Corneal Confocal Microscopy Journal of Personalized Medicine corneal confocal microscopy COVID-19 small fiber neuropathy cornea SARS-CoV-2 |
| title | Small Fibre Peripheral Alterations Following COVID-19 Detected by Corneal Confocal Microscopy |
| title_full | Small Fibre Peripheral Alterations Following COVID-19 Detected by Corneal Confocal Microscopy |
| title_fullStr | Small Fibre Peripheral Alterations Following COVID-19 Detected by Corneal Confocal Microscopy |
| title_full_unstemmed | Small Fibre Peripheral Alterations Following COVID-19 Detected by Corneal Confocal Microscopy |
| title_short | Small Fibre Peripheral Alterations Following COVID-19 Detected by Corneal Confocal Microscopy |
| title_sort | small fibre peripheral alterations following covid 19 detected by corneal confocal microscopy |
| topic | corneal confocal microscopy COVID-19 small fiber neuropathy cornea SARS-CoV-2 |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2075-4426/12/4/563 |
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