In two new studies, researchers confirm that for the majority of patients with respiratory infections who lose the sense of smell, this is due to COVID-19.
They showed that the average loss of the sense of smell was 79.7 on a scale from 0-100—which indicates a large to complete sensory loss.
In addition, the loss of smell is very probably the best predictor of COVID-19 among patients with symptoms of respiratory diseases.
The disease also often results in both loss of taste and the other senses in the mouth.
The research was conducted by a team from Aarhus University and elsewhere.
If you have had COVID-19, then forget about enjoying the smell of freshly made coffee.
The researchers say that there is frequently a loss of smell and that this often lasts for a long time in cases of COVID-19.
They tested a total of 23 nationalities and over 4,500 COVID-19 patients from all over the world.
In addition to the loss of the sense of smell, the sense of taste was also strongly reduced, to 69.0 on a scale from 0-100, just as the remaining sense of feeling in the mouth was also reduced, this time to 37.3 on a scale from 0-100.
This emphasizes how important it is to be aware of this symptom, as it may be the only symptom of the disease.
The team also stresses only around half of the patients with a loss of smell have gotten their sense of smell back after forty days.
While the loss of smell in itself removes the ability to sense the aroma of food, the simultaneous loss of the other senses makes it difficult to register what people are eating.
The results are in line with previous studies and pave the way for future studies on risk factors for permanent sensory loss, along with a better understanding of the consequences of these sensory losses for the patients.
One author of the study is Alexander Wieck Fjaeldstad.
The study is published in Chemical Senses.
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