Evaluation of COVID-19 Patients with the Assessment of Self-reported Olfactory Functioning and Olfaction-related Quality of Life Questionnaire

Objective: This study aims to investigate the olfactory and taste disorders (OTD) in Coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19) and their effects on the quality of life (QoL). Methods: This study was conducted between December 2021 and January 2022. The study group consisted of 30 COVID-19 patients, and the control group consisted of 30 healthy volunteers. The assessment of self-reported olfactory functioning and olfaction-related quality of life (ASOF) questionnaire was administered to all subjects. ASOF consists of 3 sections: The subjective olfactory capability scale (SOC), the self-reported capability of perceiving specific odors scale (SRP), and the olfactory-related quality of life scale (ORQ). The ASOF questionnaires, frequency, and type of OTD were examined. Results: Twelve (30%) patients had olfaction disorders (OD). Five patients (16.66%) had anosmia, and 7 (23.33%) had hyposmia. Ten (33.33%) patients had taste disorders (TD). Seven (23.33%) patients had hypogeusia and 3 (10%) had ageusia. Nine (30%) patients defined the most disordered taste as salty taste and 1 (3.3%) described it as sweet. In the ASOF results, the number of subjects with abnormal olfactory abilities was 0 in the control group, and 12 in the study group the number of subjects with problems in odor perception was 0 in the control group, and 8 in the study group, the number of subjects with odor-related problems in QoL was 0 in the control group, and 12 in the study group. ASOF-SOC, ASOF-SRP, and ASOF-QRQ scores were significantly higher in the study group (p=0.001, p=0.001, p=0.001, respectively). Conclusion: OTD is common in COVID-19 and may affect QoL. [ FROM AUTHOR] Copyright of European Archives of Medical Research is the property of Galenos Yayinevi Tic. LTD. STI and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full . (Copyright applies to all s.)

Effect of the povidone iodine, hypertonic alkaline solution and saline nasal lavage on nasopharyngeal viral load in COVID-19.

OBJECTIVE: The present study aimed to investigate the in vivo activity of nasal irrigation (NI) with saline, NI with povidone-iodine (PVP-I) 1%, NI with a mix of hypertonic alkaline and PVP-I 1% against Severe acute respiratory syndrome-coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2). DESIGN: This study was a prospective randomised clinical trial. SETTING: A multicenter study involving tertiary care centres. PARTICIPANTS: The study included adult outpatients whose qualitative SARS-CoV-2 RT-PCR tests in nasopharyngeal swabs were positive. One hundred twenty patients were divided into four equal groups. Standard COVID-19 treatment was given to Group 1, NI containing saline was added to patients' treatment in Group 2, NI containing 1% PVP-I solution was added to patients' treatment in Group 3, and NI containing 1% PVP-I solution and the hypertonic alkaline solution was added to patients' treatment in Group 4. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: On the first day of diagnosis (Day 0), nasopharyngeal swab samples were taken, on the third and fifth days the nasopharyngeal viral load (NVL) reduction in quantitative RT-PCR test was calculated. RESULTS: Between the zeroth to third days and zeroth to fifth days, the NVL reduction was significant in all groups (p < .05). In paired comparisons of groups, the NVL decrease in Group 4 in the first 3 days was significantly lower than all groups (p < .05). The NVL decrease in Groups 3 and 4 in the first 5 days were significantly lower than Group 1 (p < .05). CONCLUSION: This study revealed that the use of NI of 1% PVP-I and the hypertonic alkaline solution mixture was more effective in reducing NVL.

Effects of hypertonic alkaline nasal irrigation on COVID-19.

Objective: The causative agent of COVID-19 is a novel member of coronaviridaes, SARS-CoV-2. It has been reported that the spike (S) protein of SARS-CoV-2 is responsible of infectivity. The S protein is demonstrated to be inactivated under environmental condition, such as hypertonicity and alkaline pH. The aim of the study was to investigate the effect of hypertonic alkaline nasal irrigation (HANI) on SARS-CoV-2. Methods: Sixty patients divided into two groups. The patients in Group 1 used hydroxychloroquine (HCQ), and the patients in Group 2 used HCQ and HANI. Nasopharyngeal samples were collected at the beginning, on 3rd and 7th day of the PCR test positivity. The nasopharyngeal viral load (NVL) changes analyzed with quantitative PCR. Results: NVL decrease in weekly period was statistically significant for both groups, when the difference between NVL day 0 and 3rd in Group 1 and NVL difference between day 0 and 3rd in Group 2 were compared. The difference between Groups 1 and 2 in terms of NVL change was statistically significant (P < 0.05). Conclusion: We demonstrated a significant decrease in nasopharyngeal SARS-CoV-2 load with HANI solution and suggest that HANI may be promising modality for the COVID-19 treatment. Level of evidence: IB.