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. 2021 Mar;278(3):695-702.
doi: 10.1007/s00405-020-06266-3. Epub 2020 Aug 25.

Chemosensory dysfunction in COVID-19 out-patients

María Jesús Rojas-Lechuga #  1   2   3 , Adriana Izquierdo-Domínguez #  4   5   6 , Carlos Chiesa-Estomba  7 , Christian Calvo-Henríquez  8 , Ithzel Maria Villarreal  9 , Genoveva Cuesta-Chasco  10 , Manuel Bernal-Sprekelsen  1   2   3 , Joaquim Mullol #  11   12   13   14 , Isam Alobid #  15   16   17   18   19
Affiliations

Chemosensory dysfunction in COVID-19 out-patients

María Jesús Rojas-Lechuga et al. Eur Arch Otorhinolaryngol. 2021 Mar.

Abstract

Background: Since the outbreak in China due to coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) various studies have been published describing olfactory and gustatory dysfunction (OGD).

Objective: The aim was to investigate the frequency and severity of OGD in SARS-CoV-2 (+) out-patients compared to controls with common cold/flu like symptoms and two negative RT-PCR.

Methods: A multicenter cross-sectional study on SARS-CoV-2-positive out-patients (n = 197) and controls (n = 107) from five Spanish Hospitals. Severity of OGD was categorized by visual analogue scale (VAS). Frequency and severity of the chemosensory impairment were analyzed.

Results: The frequencies of smell (70.1%) and taste loss (65%) were significantly higher among COVID-19 subjects than in the controls (20.6% and 19.6%, respectively). Simultaneous OGD was more frequent in the COVID-19 group (61.9% vs 10.3%) and they scored higher in VAS for severity of OGD than controls. In the COVID-19 group, OGD was predominant in young subjects 46.5 ± 14.5 and females (63.5%). Subjects with severe loss of smell were younger (42.7 years old vs 45.5 years old), and recovered later (median = 7, IQR = 5.5 vs median = 4, IQR = 3) than those with mild loss of smell. Subjects with severe loss of taste, recovered later in days (median = 7, IQR = 6 vs median = 2, IQR = 2), compared to those with mild loss.

Conclusion: OGD is a prevalent symptom in COVID-19 subjects with significant differences compared to controls. It was predominant in young and females subjects. Stratified analysis by the severity of OGD showed that more than 60% of COVID-19 subjects presented a severe OGD who took a longer time to recover compared to those with mild symptoms.

Keywords: Ageusia; Anosmia; COVID-19; Hyposmia; Out-patients; SARS-CoV-2; Taste loss.

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Conflict of interest statement

Isam Alobid: Consultant for Roche, Novartis, Mylan, Menarini, MSD. Joaquim Mullol: member of national or international advisory boards, received speaker fees, or funding for clinical trials and research projects from ALK, AstraZeneca, Genentech, GlaxoSmithKline, Glenmark, Menarini, Mitsubishi-Tanabe, MSD, Mylan-MEDA Pharma, Novartis, Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, SANOFI-Genzyme, UCB Pharma, and Uriach Group. The other authors declare that they have no conflicts of interest.

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Frequency and severity of loss of smell or taste in COVID-19 subjects. a Self-reported frequency of smell and taste loss in COVID-19 subject’s vs controls; and b self-reported severity by visual analogue scale (VAS, 0–10 cm) of loss of smell and taste in COVID-19 subject’s vs controls
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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