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. 2023 May 22;12(10):3598.
doi: 10.3390/jcm12103598.

Characteristics of Chemosensory Perception in Long COVID and COVID Reinfection

Mikki Jaramillo  1 , Thankam P Thyvalikakath  2 , George Eckert  3 , Mythily Srinivasan  1
Affiliations

Characteristics of Chemosensory Perception in Long COVID and COVID Reinfection

Mikki Jaramillo et al. J Clin Med. .

Abstract

Emerging data suggest an increasing prevalence of persistent symptoms in individuals affected by coronavirus disease-19 (COVID-19). The objective of this study was to determine the relative frequency of altered taste and smell in COVID reinfection (multiple COVID positive tests) and long COVID (one COVID positive test). We sent an electronic survey to patients in the Indiana University Health COVID registry with positive COVID test results, querying if they were experiencing symptoms consistent with long COVID including altered chemosensory perceptions. Among the 225 respondents, a greater long COVID burden and COVID reinfection was observed in women. Joint pain was reported as the most common symptom experienced by 18% of individuals in the long COVID cohort. In the COVID reinfection cohort >20% of individuals reported headache, joint pain, and cough. Taste perception worse than pre-COVID was reported by 29% and 42% of individuals in the long COVID and COVID reinfection cohorts, respectively. Smell perception worse than pre-COVID was reported by 37% and 46% of individuals in long COVID and COVID reinfection cohorts, respectively. Further, Chi-square test suggested significant association between pre-COVID severity of taste/smell perception and headache in both cohorts. Our findings highlight the prevalence of persistent chemosensory dysfunction for two years and longer in long COVID and COVID reinfection.

Keywords: long COVID; reinfection; smell perception; taste dysfunction.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest. The funders had no role in the design of the study; in the collection, analyses, or interpretation of data; in the writing of the manuscript; or in the decision to publish the results.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Proportion of individuals reporting the indicated symptom in the (A) long COVID and (B) COVID reinfection cohorts.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Characteristics of changes in taste perception. Distribution of altered taste among individuals in the long COVID (A) and COVID reinfection (C) cohorts. Distribution of duration of taste perception worse than pre COVID in the long COVID (B) and COVID reinfection (D) cohorts.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Characteristics of changes in smell perception. (A) Distribution of altered smell among individuals in the long COVID (A) and COVID reinfection (C) cohorts. Distribution of duration of taste perception worse than pre COVID in the long COVID (B) and COVID reinfection (D) cohorts.
Figure 4
Figure 4
Correlation of vaccinations with taste and smell changes in long COVID and COVID reinfection. Shows distribution of number of individuals (as percent of the total cohort) experiencing altered taste (A) or smell (B) with respect to the number of COVID-19 vaccine boosters received.
Figure 5
Figure 5
Correlation of taste and smell changes. (A) A higher percentage of individuals reported both taste and smell perception worse than pre COVID in both the long COVID (A) and COVID reinfection (B) cohorts. (C) Pearson correlation (r) between taste and smell worse than pre COVID in long COVID (C) and COVID reinfection (D) cohorts.
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