Summary: A new study reveals a disturbing consequence of COVID-19 infection: around a quarter of American patients reported only partial or no recovery of taste or smell. The researchers analyzed data from the National Health Interview Survey, focusing on those who had experienced SARS-CoV-2 infection.
The results show a strong correlation between the severity of COVID symptoms and the extent of sensory loss. These findings underscore the need for treatments and support for patients dealing with these long-term effects.
Key Facts:
- 24% of COVID-19 patients reported only partial recovery of smell, while over 3% had no recovery at all.
- Similarly, 20% of patients who experienced taste loss due to COVID-19 only partially recovered, while over 2% did not recover at all.
- The likelihood of sensory recovery decreased as the severity of COVID-19 symptoms increased.
Source: Mass Eye and Ear
During the COVID-19 pandemic, many patients experienced a loss of taste and smell during and after being infected with SARS-CoV-2. A retrospective study by researchers at Massachusetts Eye and Ear, a member of the Mass General Brigham healthcare system, investigated the loss of olfactory and gustatory senses and estimated that about a quarter of Americans who had COVID-19 reported only partial or no recovery of taste or smell.
The results are published in The Laryngoscope.
“We wanted to quantify the national impact of smell disorders resulting from COVID,” said Neil Bhattacharyya, MD, FACS, Professor of Otolaryngology at Mass Eye and Ear. “With this data we can understand, in big numbers, how many people lost their sense of smell or taste due to COVID infection and how many people never fully recovered those senses.”
The retrospective study utilizes data from the 2021 National Health Interview Survey (NHIS), a branch of the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), which includes survey data from 29,696 adults. In the NHIS data, COVID patients were asked about the severity of their symptoms, any loss of taste or smell, and their recovery of those senses.
The research team reported that about 60 percent of surveyed participants infected with COVID experienced a loss of smell and about 58 percent experienced loss of taste. Additionally, not all the patients experienced a full recovery of their senses once they recovered from their infection.
The study found that around 72 percent of patients fully recovered their sense of smell, but 24 percent only had a partial recovery and over 3 percent had no recovery of their sense of smell at all. Similarly, of those who experienced a loss of taste due to COVID, about 76 percent fully recovered the sense, while 20 percent only partially recovered and over 2 percent did not recover at all. That amounted to almost 28 million Americans potentially left with a decreased sense of smell after COVID infection.
Bhattacharyya said one of the motivations for the study was a patient he saw who lost 50 pounds due to his COVID-related smell loss.
“The patient wasn’t eating and became very sick and very depressed because of the loss of smell,” Bhattacharyya said. “When you hear about COVID-related smell loss, you think most people get it back and are fine. But there is a substantial number of people who don’t recover it.”
The study also found that there is a correlation between COVID symptom severity and loss of smell or taste. As symptom severity increased, the percentage of patients with smell or taste loss also increased. Moreover, the likelihood of smell and taste sensory recovery also decreased with more severe COVID symptoms.
The authors noted that since smell and taste often work together, it may be difficult for patients to self-report which senses have or have not recovered. However, there remains a large population of patients who experience loss of smell and taste as an after-effect of COVID.
While the study is novel due to its national population sample, the dataset focuses only on patients treated in 2021. This means that patients before and after 2021 were not taken into consideration, and if an individual recovered their sense of smell or taste after 2021, it was not documented in the data. In addition, rates of loss of smell or taste due to infection from variants of COVID that arose after 2021 likely vary from the rates detected in this study.
Although there currently isn’t a standard treatment for patients with smell and taste deficits, the researchers note these findings can help providers counsel patients who have lost their sense of smell or taste due to COVID and track recovery rates.
“The value of this study is that we are highlighting a group of people who have been a bit neglected,” Bhattacharyya said.
“Losing your sense of smell or taste isn’t as benign as you may think. It can lead to decreased eating for pleasure and, in more extreme cases, it can lead to depression and weight loss.”
About this neurology and COVID-19 research news
Author: Aaron Sanborn
Source: Mass Eye and Ear
Contact: Aaron Sanborn – Mass Eye and Ear
Image: The image is credited to Neuroscience News
Original Research: Open access.
“Smell and Taste Loss Associated with COVID Infection” by Neil Bhattacharyya et al. The Laryngoscope
Abstract
Smell and Taste Loss Associated with COVID Infection
Objective
The aim of this study was to quantify the impact of COVID-19 on olfactory and gustatory function in US adults.
Methods
From the 2021 Adult National Health Interview Survey, demographic and survey-specific module data concerning COVID-19 diagnoses, testing and disease severity, and data quantifying disturbances and eventual recovery of smell and taste were extracted. Sample weights were applied to obtain nationally representative statistics. The overall rate of COVID-19 infection was determined, and those diagnosed with COVID-19 were analyzed with respect to disease severity, smell and taste disturbance, and respective recoveries.
Results
In 2021, 35.8 million or 14% of the adult population (95% CI 13.5–14.7%; mean age, 43.9 years; 53.8% female) had been diagnosed with COVID-19. Among those, 60.5% (58.6–62.5%) and 58.2% (56.2–60.1%) reported accompanying losses in smell or taste, respectively; there was a significant association between overall COVID-19 symptom severity and smell (p < 0.001) and taste disturbance (p < 0.001). Following infection, 72.2% (69.9–74.3%), 24.1% (22.2–26.2%), and 3.7% (3.0–4.6%) of the patients experienced complete, partial, and no smell recovery, respectively. Recovery rates for gustatory function paralleled olfaction, with 76.8% (74.6–78.9%), 20.6% (18.7–22.7%), and 2.6 (1.9–3.4%) reporting complete, partial, and no recovery of taste, respectively. When sensory disturbance was present, severity of overall symptomatology was negatively associated with smell and taste recovery (p < 0.001 for each).
Conclusion
The majority of adults infected with COVID-19 in 2021 experienced olfactory or gustatory dysfunction with a non-negligible population reporting incomplete or no near-term sensory recovery. Our results are useful for providers counseling patients and suggest that interventions lessening overall COVID-19 symptom burden may prevent prolonged sensory dysfunction.
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