Department of Biomedical Sciences, Humanitas University, Via Rita Levi Montalcini 4, Pieve Emanuele, 20072, Milan, Italy.
Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery Unit, Humanitas Research Hospital, IRCCS, Via Manzoni 56, 20089, Milan, Rozzano, Italy.
Eur Arch Otorhinolaryngol. 2022 Sep;279(9):4633-4640. doi: 10.1007/s00405-022-07428-1. Epub 2022 Jun 29.
Our study aimed to describe recovery of gustatory dysfunction (GD) and olfactory dysfunction (OD) in COVID-19 patients, and to analyze variables associated with early or late recovery.
Telephone surveys were administered during an 18-month follow-up after COVID-19 diagnosis. One hundred and thirty-two included patients rated olfactory and gustatory function at each follow-up.
One hundred and twenty-nine patients reported GD, of whom 91 (70.5%) reported severe GD, and 99 patients reported OD, of whom 84 (84.9%) reported severe OD. Seventy-two/129 (55.8%) and 52/99 (52.5%) patients reported an improvement in GD and in OD during the first 7 days from the onset, respectively. At 3-month follow-up, 110/120 patients (85.3%) recovered from GD, while 80/99 patients (80.8%) recovered from OD. At 18-month follow-up, a total of 120/129 patients (93.0%) recovered from GD and 86/99 patients (86.9%) recovered from OD; while 10 patients (7.0%) still reported GD and 13 patients (13.1%) still reported OD. Severe GD/OD at presentation were associated with late complete recovery of taste/smell (p = 0.019 and p = 0.034, respectively). Improvement over the first 7 days from onset was significantly associated with faster recovery (p < 0.001).
More than 80% of patients reported complete recovery of olfactory/gustatory function in the first 3 months after symptom onset. At 18-month follow-up, patients reporting complete recovery of gustatory and olfactory function were 93% and 87%, respectively. Severity of chemosensory dysfunction at the onset was negatively correlated to recovery, and improvement of taste and/or smell function within the first 7 days from symptom onset was significantly associated with early resolution.
本研究旨在描述 COVID-19 患者味觉障碍（GD）和嗅觉障碍（OD）的恢复情况，并分析与早期或晚期恢复相关的变量。
在 COVID-19 诊断后进行了 18 个月的随访，通过电话调查进行。在每次随访中，有 132 名入组患者对嗅觉和味觉功能进行了评分。
132 名患者报告了 GD，其中 91 名（70.5%）报告了严重 GD，99 名患者报告了 OD，其中 84 名（84.9%）报告了严重 OD。72/129 名（55.8%）和 52/99 名（52.5%）患者在发病后第 7 天内分别报告 GD 和 OD 改善。在 3 个月随访时，120/122 名（98.4%）患者 GD 恢复，80/99 名（80.8%）患者 OD 恢复。在 18 个月随访时，129/129 名（99.2%）患者 GD 恢复，86/99 名（86.9%）患者 OD 恢复；而 10 名（7.0%）患者仍报告 GD，13 名（13.1%）患者仍报告 OD。发病时的严重 GD/OD 与味觉/嗅觉完全恢复的晚期相关（p=0.019 和 p=0.034）。发病后第 7 天内的改善与更快的恢复显著相关（p<0.001）。
超过 80%的患者在症状出现后 3 个月内报告嗅觉/味觉功能完全恢复。在 18 个月随访时，报告完全恢复味觉和嗅觉功能的患者分别为 93%和 87%。发病时化学感觉功能障碍的严重程度与恢复呈负相关，症状出现后第 7 天内味觉和/或嗅觉功能的改善与早期缓解显著相关。
