Smell and taste loss in COVID-19 patients: assessment outcomes in a Victorian population.
Acta Otolaryngol
; 141(3): 299-302, 2021 Mar.
Article
in English
| MEDLINE | ID: covidwho-1023995
ABSTRACT
Background:
It has been noted that olfactory and gustatory disturbances may precede or accompany the typical features of COVID-19, such as fever and cough. Hence, a high index of suspicion is required when patients report sudden loss of smell or taste, in order to facilitate timely diagnosis and isolation.Aims/objectives:
The aim of this study was to assess the frequency of olfactory and gustatory disturbances in COVID-19 positive patients from a cohort representative of Melbourne, Australia.Methods:
A retrospective descriptive study was conducted on patients who tested positive for COVID-19. Standardised phone consultations and online follow-up questionnaires were performed to assess clinical features of COVID-19, with a focus on smell and taste disorders.Results:
The most frequent symptoms experienced were taste and smell disturbances with 74% experiencing either smell or taste disturbance or both. Post-recovery, 34% of patients continued to experience ongoing hyposmia and 2% anosmia, whereas 28% continued to suffer from hypogeusia or ageusia.Conclusion andsignificance:
This study presents the high rates of improvement of both olfactory and gustatory disturbance in a short-lived period. It also highlights the importance of these symptoms in prompting appropriate testing, quarantine precautions, initiate early olfactory retraining and the potential for continued sensory disturbance.Keywords
Full text:
Available
Collection:
International databases
Database:
MEDLINE
Main subject:
Smell
/
Taste
/
Taste Disorders
/
Risk Assessment
/
COVID-19
/
Olfaction Disorders
Type of study:
Cohort study
/
Observational study
/
Prognostic study
/
Randomized controlled trials
Topics:
Long Covid
Limits:
Adolescent
/
Adult
/
Aged
/
Female
/
Humans
/
Male
/
Middle aged
/
Young adult
Country/Region as subject:
Oceania
Language:
English
Journal:
Acta Otolaryngol
Year:
2021
Document Type:
Article
Affiliation country:
00016489.2020.1855366
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