Overcoming Post-COVID-19 Long-Lasting Olfactory Issues
Exploring the Impact of COVID-19 on Smell and Taste, Its Repercussions on Daily Life, and Advances in Innovative Treatments
The COVID-19 pandemic has messed up millions of lives in all sorts of ways. Even my wife wasn’t spared and had to deal with weird stuff like losing her sense of smell, everything smelling foul, and taste changes when she got infected. Fortunately, in her case, these symptoms were temporary, lasting about 15 days.
However, in my line of work as a medical doctor, I have seen many patients still struggling with these changes that mess up their quality of life and mood, particularly those who find joy and healing through cooking.
The Extent of Post-COVID-19 Anosmia in the US
Post-COVID-19 anosmia statistics in the United States reveal a worrying picture. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), as of November 2023, 103,436,829 cases of COVID-19 have been reported in the US, with 1,138,309 deaths.
Worldometer updated these figures to 109,378,312 cases with 1,182,614 deaths as of November 2023.
Olfactory disorder is common among COVID-19 patients, with approximately 70% experiencing loss of smell during the illness and 65% having olfactory dysfunction 18 months later.
This 2022 paper on MDPI found that 24.2% of mildly symptomatic patients still experienced chemosensory (responsive to chemical stimuli) dysfunction one year after infection, with 45.1% presenting with dysfunction after 12 months and 35.9% suffering from parosmia (abnormality in the sense of smell.)
Recent studies suggest that up to 20% of all COVID-19 patients experience long-term olfactory disorders.
Mechanism of Loss of Smell and Taste in COVID-19
Anosmia (temporary loss of smell) is one of the primary neurological symptoms and one of the most common and earliest indicators of COVID-19.
Interestingly, the sensory neurons that detect and transmit smell to the brain are not among the cell types most vulnerable to SARS-CoV-2 infection.
Studies led by neuroscientists at Harvard Medical School have identified that the virus primarily affects cells that supply metabolic and structural support to olfactory sensory neurons and specific populations of stem cells and blood vessel cells.
Cells contain the receptor, which SARS-CoV-2 uses to enter human cells. It implies that in most cases, SARS-CoV-2 infection is unlikely to damage olfactory neural circuits permanently and lead to persistent anosmia.
Accompanying symptoms and causes
Patients with post-COVID-19 anosmia not only lose their sense of smell but may also suffer from parosmia and other related symptoms.
Parosmia is a condition where our sense of smell is distorted, causing us to perceive smells differently from how they actually are. People with parosmia may experience odors that are unpleasant or different from their true nature.
All these sequela cause mood disturbances, weight loss, and a decreased quality of life caused by damage to sensory neurons or brain areas responsible for the smell.
Work-Life and Mental Health After the Pandemic
The COVID-19 pandemic has destroyed part of the work and private lives of many people, as well as employees’ mental well-being and self-rated health.
About 30% of employees reported that their work and personal lives had worsened, while about 10% reported improvements at work and 13% in private life.
The negative perception of the impact of the crisis is enormously strengthened by lower mental well-being and self-rated health.
But, if the problem actually gave you more leisure time and brightened up your personal life, chances are, you’re feeling pretty good mentally.
Conventional Treatments and New Options
Although there are pharmacological and topical treatments for anosmia, their effectiveness is limited, especially in cases of parosmia. It is where hope arises with CT-guided stellate ganglion block (SGB) to treat post-COVID parosmia.
With this technique, an anesthetic and a depot steroid are injected into the stellate ganglion under the guidance of computed tomography.
A recent study indicated that most patients treated with this technique experienced a significant improvement in their symptoms.
This technique helped a bunch of patients who hadn’t gotten relief before. But patients got even more relief when they had the treatment on both sides.
The good old CT-guided stellate ganglion block (SGB)is a promising new way to help those dealing with long-term smell issues after COVID-19.
The advancements are exciting, as this technique offers hope to those facing persistent smell disorders post-COVID. However, microsurgery is a minimally invasive new option that gives hope to those with long-lasting loss of smell after COVID.
Conclusions
From my own experience and medical practice, I’ve noticed that not only does losing your sense of smell after COVID-19 mess with daily life and enjoyment, but it can also really hit mental health and job performance hard.
The roll-out of treatments such as the CT-guided stellate ganglion block is like a light at the end of the tunnel for folks grappling with these lingering disorders. As you can see, the news is excellent for the many people still facing long-term COVID-19 symptoms.
Overcoming anosmia and parosmia after COVID-19 is not just about regaining smell; it’s about reclaiming mental well-being in daily life.
To truly get into the weeds on this topic, there’s a detailed research piece you should look at in the Radiological Society of North America (RSNA).
You might find the “Analysis of Prevalence and Predictive Factors of Long-Lasting Olfactory and Gustatory Dysfunction in COVID-19 Patients” in PubMed. Here is some additional information on “Impact of the COVID-19 crisis on work and private life, mental well-being” on BMC Public Health
Thank you for taking the time to read my story. I wish you a healthy life.