An Online Observational Study of Patients With Olfactory and Gustory Alterations Secondary to SARS-CoV-2 Infection

Frontiers in Public Health

article

Patricia Gómez-Iglesias¹  José Miguel Láinez²  Jorge Matías-Guiu¹  Jesús Porta-Etessam¹  Teresa Montalvo¹  Adrián Valls-Carbó¹  Vicente Gajate¹  Jordi A. Matías-Guiu¹  Beatriz Parejo-Carbonell¹  Nuria González-García¹  David Ezpeleta³ 

[1] Department of Neurology, Institute of Neurosciences, Hospital Clínico San Carlos, Universidad Complutense de Madrid;Department of Neurology, Hospital Clínico de Valencia, Universidad de Valencia;Department of Neurology, Hospital Quirón

关键词: SARS-CoV-2;    Covid-19;    coronavirus;    neurological;    olfactory alterations;    anosmia;    online questionnaire;   

DOI  :  10.3389/fpubh.2020.00243

学科分类：社会科学、人文和艺术（综合）

来源: Frontiers

【 摘 要 】

Introduction: Since the beginning of the Covid-19 epidemic produced by SARS2-Cov virus, olfactory alterations have been observed at a greater frequency than in other coronavirus epidemics. While olfactory alterations may be observed in patients with rhinovirus, influenza virus, or parainfluenza virus infection, they are typically explained by nasal obstruction with mucus or direct epithelial damage; in the case of SARS-CoV-2, olfactory alterations may present without nasal congestion with mucus. We performed a study of patients presenting olfactory/gustatory alterations in the context of SARS-CoV-2 infection in order to contribute to the understanding of this phenomenon. Material and Methods: We performed a descriptive, cross-sectional, observational study of the clinical characteristics of olfactory/gustatory alterations using a self-administered, anonymous online questionnaire. Results: A total of 909 patients with SARS-CoV-2 infection and olfactory/gustatory alterations responded to the questionnaire in the 4-day data collection period; 824 cases (90.65%) reported simultaneous olfactory and gustatory involvement. Patients' responses to the questionnaire revealed ageusia (581, 64.1% of respondents), hypogeusia (256, 28.2%), dysgeusia (22, 2.4%), anosmia (752 82.8%), hyposmia (142, 15.6%), and dysosmia (8, 0.9%). Fifty-four percent (489) did not report concomitant nasal congestion or mucus. Conclusion: Olfactory alterations are frequent in patients with SARS-CoV-2 infection and is only associated with nasal congestion in half of the cases.

【 授权许可】

CC BY