Olfactory and taste dysfunction among mild‐to‐moderate symptomatic COVID‐19 positive health care workers: An international survey

Abstract

Objectives To determine the prevalence of olfactory and taste dysfunction (OD; TD) among COVID‐19 positive health care workers (HCWs), their associated risk factors and prognosis. Methods Between May and June 2020, a longitudinal multicenter study was conducted on symptomatic COVID‐19 PCR confirmed HCWs (COVID‐19 positive) in London and Padua. Results Hundred and fourteen COVID‐19 positive HCWs were surveyed with a response rate of 70.6% over a median follow‐up period of 52 days. UK prevalence of OD and TD was 73.1% and 69.2%, respectively. There was a male to female ratio of 1:3 with 81.6% being white, 43.7% being nurses/health care assistants (HCAs), and 39.3% being doctors. In addition, 53.2% of them worked on COVID‐19 wards. Complete recovery was reported in 31.8% for OD and 47.1% for TD with a 52 days follow‐up. The job role of doctors and nurses negatively influenced smell ( P = .04 and P = .02) and taste recovery ( P = .02 and P = .01). Ethnicity (being white) showed to positively influence only taste recovery ( P = .04). Sex (being female) negatively influenced OD and TD recovery only in Paduan HCWs ( P = .02 and P = .011, respectively). Working on a COVID‐19 ward did not influence prognosis. Conclusions The prevalence of OD and TD was considerably higher in HCWs. The prognosis for OD and TD recovery was worse for nurses/HCAs and doctors but working on a COVID‐19 ward did not influence prognosis. Sixty‐eight percent of surveyed HCWs at 52 days continued to experience OD or TD requiring additional future medical management capacity. Level of Evidence 4.

Comparison of Brain Activation Patterns during Olfactory Stimuli between Recovered COVID-19 Patients and Healthy Controls: A Functional Near-Infrared Spectroscopy (fNIRS) Study

“…It has been reported that the prevalence of olfactory dysfunction is 73.1%, with a male to female ratio of 1:3 [8]. It was also reported that complete recovery of olfactory dysfunction occurs in 31.8% of COVID-19 survivors [8].…”

“…Recent studies have focused on developing questionnaires and a smell identification test that assess olfactory dysfunction [6,7]. It has been reported that the prevalence of olfactory dysfunction is 73.1%, with a male to female ratio of 1:3 [8]. It was also reported that complete recovery of olfactory dysfunction occurs in 31.8% of COVID-19 survivors [8].…”

Post-viral effects of COVID-19 in the olfactory system and their implications

“… 6 , 7 , 8 , 9 , 10 , 11 Pooled prevalence estimates reveal olfactory dysfunction in approximately half to three-quarters of people diagnosed with COVID-19, with estimates trending higher when semiobjective quantitative diagnostic tools, which graduate levels of impairment to detect subclinical smell loss, are used. 12 , 13 , 14 , 15 , 16 , 17 …”

“…In this Rapid Review, we discuss the association between post-viral olfactory dysfunction and infection by SARS-CoV-2, summarise the biological pathways, contextualise histological evidence from autopsy studies, and propose a hypothesis about the usefulness of this dysfunction for predicting subsequent neurological disorders. Considering the intertwined relation between smell and taste, 9 , 11 , 15 , 17 and because little is known about the underlying mechanisms that could account for the complete ageusia (ie, loss of taste) and loss of oral chemesthesis seen alongside post-viral olfactory dysfunction in people with COVID-19, we focus on olfactory symptomatology alone.…”

Characteristics of taste dysfunction in COVID-19 subjects coming from two different countries

“…Between May 26 and June 10, 2020, we conducted a survey in two European hospitals (London (UK) and Padua (Italy)) on COVID-19 positive subjects who complained of olfactory and smell dysfunction during the course of their disease (Andrews et al 2020). The recipients of this survey were mild-to-moderate symptomatic COVID-19 positive health-care workers who tested positive by RT-PCR for SARS-CoV2 and were working at their own hospital during COVID-19 pandemic.…”