Is loss of smell an early predictor of COVID-19 severity: a systematic review and meta-analysis.
Arch Pharm Res
; 44(7): 725-740, 2021 Jul.
Article
in English
| MEDLINE | ID: covidwho-1321878
ABSTRACT
Anecdotal evidence suggests that the severity of coronavirus disease of 2019 (COVID-19), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), is likely to be distinguished by variations in loss of smell (LOS). Thus, we conducted a meta-analysis of 45 articles that include a total of 42,120 COVID-19 patients from 17 different countries to demonstrate that severely ill or hospitalized COVID-19 patients have a lesser chance of experiencing LOS than non-severely ill or non-hospitalized COVID-19 patients (odds ratio = 0.527 [95% CI 0.373-0.744; p < 0.001] and 0.283 [95% CI 0.173-0.462; p < 0.001], respectively). We also proposed a possible mechanism underlying the association of COVID-19 severity with anosmia, which may explain why patients without sense of smell develop severe COVID-19. Variations in LOS according to the severity of COVID-19 is a global phenomenon, with few exceptions. Since severely ill patients have a lower rate of anosmia, patients without anosmia should be monitored more closely in the early stages of COVID-19, for early diagnosis of severity of illness. An understanding of how the severity of COVID-19 infection and LOS are associated has profound implications for the clinical management and mitigation strategies for the disease.
Keywords
Full text:
Available
Collection:
International databases
Database:
MEDLINE
Main subject:
Smell
/
Olfactory Perception
/
Anosmia
/
COVID-19
/
Odorants
Type of study:
Diagnostic study
/
Prognostic study
/
Qualitative research
/
Reviews
/
Systematic review/Meta Analysis
Topics:
Long Covid
Limits:
Female
/
Humans
/
Male
Language:
English
Journal:
Arch Pharm Res
Year:
2021
Document Type:
Article
Affiliation country:
S12272-021-01344-4
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