INTRODUCTION: Since the first reports of the pneumonia caused by the SARS-COV-2 virus in December 2019, in Wuhan, China, the infection spread and according to the WHO more than 500 million people have already been infected, with that more than 6 million ended up dying as a result. Due to the evolution of the disease, some individuals needed to be admitted into the Intensive Care Unit. And after discharge, several individuals still have symptoms, the most common being fatigue, dyspnea, and cognitive impairment. In that context, the applicability of instruments to assess these impacts are valid. OBJECTIVE: To investigate the impact of COVID-19 on cognition, exertion and fatigue complaint after ICU stay. METHOD: This is a study cohort, prospective and multi-center quantitative study. The study evaluated cognition, fatigue and the degree of effort perceived by the patient after discharge from the ICU, through validated questionnaires. Data were evaluated by the SPSS® statistical program. RESULTS: Sample composed of 167 patients, with mean age of 49.3 years, mean time in the ICU of 16.6 days and a small majority were male (52.7%). 75 patients participated in the 3 collection moments for the SPMSQ, with an average of 1.63 in D14, 0.88 in D30 and 0.47 in D90. 76.1% of participants had preserved cognitive ability on D14, 87.1% on D30 and 95.9% on D90. 67 patients responded to the BORG scale in the 3 segments, and the mean was 5.63% in D14, 3.63% in D30 and 1.88% in D90. The Spearman’s Rho coefficient found a very weak correlation between the instruments. Comparing patients with an ICU time of up to 11 days and those who needed 12 or more days of hospitalization, it was observed that the last group showed higher mean values. CONCLUSION: The evidence found in this study shows the longitudinal behavior of the cognitive state and the degree of perceived effort in performing tasks, as highly impacting on health global after the acute phase of COVID-19.
