Sudden anosmia or ageusia early signs of COVID-19 infection: study

Evidence has demonstrated that an abrupt absence of smell and taste has been observed even when other general symptoms of COVID-19 infection are not present. This may act as another gateway to the early identification of patients with COVID-19. The exact mechanism that causes patients with COVID-19 to experience such manifestations is still not clear. Zhou et al. suggested that the angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) receptor is used by COVID-19. ACE2 is distributed throughout the oral and nasal cavities, especially throughout the tongue, where it plays a part in the sense of taste. The COVID-19 virus influences the role of taste by acting as an inhibitor of ACE2. On the other hand, Bran et al. proposed another pathway in which the COVID-19 virus activates olfactory nonneuronal cells, rather than sensory or bulb neurons, subsets of olfactory epithelium sustentacular cells expressed CoV-2 receptor and failed to detect ACE2 expression in mature olfactory sensory neurons. Lee et al. stated that taste and smell impairment was substantially more common among females and younger people.6 The study also examined the relationship of anosmia and ageusia with multiple comorbidities in patients with COVID-19 (hypertension, diabetes, cancer, congestive heart failure, etc). Among 2342 patients, 15.7% reported anosmia or ageusia.

The aim of this research was to determine the relationship and prevalence of taste and smell dysfunction in patients with COVID-19 in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) population.

Enrolled participants were interviewed online via a phone call after obtaining their informed consent. Quantification of smell, taste, and other sensations before, during, and after COVID-19 infection was correlated with the severity of COVID-19 symptoms.

Results:

A total of 500 patients with (mild–severe) COVID-19 completed the survey. A total of 26.4% were asymptomatic, and 21.4% were classified as paucisymptomatic with less severe symptoms. Almost equal proportions of the studied population experienced extreme taste sensation reductions (43%) and loss of smell sensation (44%). Statistically significant drastic decreases in smell and taste senses were seen among younger individuals. The magnitude of reduction in both sense changes increased steeply from the asymptomatic group to the paucisymptomatic group to the symptomatic group.

Thus, sudden anosmia or ageusia need to be recognised for early detection of COVID-19 infection to identify otherwise hidden carriers, thus favouring an early isolation strategy that will restrict the spread of the disease.

Reference:

Prevalence of Anosmia or Ageusia in Patients With COVID-19 Among United Arab Emirates Population by Natheer H.Al-Rawi et al. published in the International Dental Journal.

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0020653921001027

Keywords:

International Dental Journal, Natheer H.Al-Rawi Ayat R.Sammouda, Eman A.Al Rahina Fatma A. AlAlib Ghadeer S. AlArayedha Hamideh A.Daryanavardb Musab H.SaeedcAhmed S. AlNuaimid, Sudden anosmia or ageusia, Sudden anosmia or ageusia and covid-19, early detection of COVID-19 infection, early isolation strategy, early detection of COVID-19, early isolation strategy for covid