Department of Health Sciences, Teku, Kathmandu.
Health Insurance Board, Teku, Kathmandu.
J Nepal Health Res Counc. 2022 Jun 2;20(1):84-88. doi: 10.33314/jnhrc.v20i01.3852.
The clinical presentations of COVID-19 have been variable, with atypical presentations being reported worldwide. Different studies have shown that olfactory and gustatory symptoms are present in confirmed COVID-19 cases, who may not have had other nasal complaints earlier. The high prevalence of these symptoms, exhibiting olfactory dysfunction before the appearance of others, is a relevant finding to aid for early detection of COVID-19. In this study, we aim to find out about the prevalence of anosmia and ageusia in COVID-19 and its correlation with age, sex, and severity of disease in the Nepalese population.
Patients with laboratory-confirmed COVID-19 infection by reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) done at Shukraraaj Tropical and Infectious Disease Hospital, Kathmandu were recruited. Questionnaires based on loss of taste and loss of smell components including age, sex, ethnicity, comorbidities were prepared, and the patients were interviewed retrospectively by phone contact.
A total of 300 patients were enrolled in our study. The mean age of the patients was 38.36±14.24 years. Prevalence of loss of smell was 54%(N=162) and loss of taste was 53% (N=159). Both of the symptoms were present in 45% of patients. The severity of the disease has a statistically significant effect on the loss of smell and taste whereas gender and smoking history has no significant difference over it.
More than half of the COVID-19 positive patients in our cohort had either loss of taste or loss of smell with the severity of disease having a significant effect on it.
COVID-19 的临床表现多种多样，世界各地都有报道出现不典型表现。不同的研究表明，嗅觉和味觉症状存在于确诊的 COVID-19 病例中，这些患者之前可能没有其他鼻部主诉。这些症状的高患病率，在其他症状出现之前表现出嗅觉功能障碍，是有助于早期发现 COVID-19 的一个相关发现。在这项研究中，我们旨在了解尼泊尔人群中 COVID-19 患者嗅觉丧失和味觉丧失的患病率及其与年龄、性别和疾病严重程度的相关性。
我们招募了在加德满都 Shukraraaj 热带和传染病医院通过逆转录-聚合酶链反应（RT-PCR）确诊为 COVID-19 感染的患者。我们准备了基于味觉和嗅觉丧失成分的问卷，包括年龄、性别、种族、合并症等，并通过电话联系对患者进行回顾性访谈。
我们的研究共纳入了 300 名患者。患者的平均年龄为 38.36±14.24 岁。嗅觉丧失的患病率为 54%（N=162），味觉丧失的患病率为 53%（N=159）。两种症状同时存在的患者占 45%。疾病的严重程度对嗅觉和味觉丧失有统计学显著影响，而性别和吸烟史对其无显著差异。
我们队列中超过一半的 COVID-19 阳性患者出现味觉或嗅觉丧失，且疾病严重程度对其有显著影响。
