IMPORTANCEDetermining the characteristics, type, and severity of olfactory dysfunction in patients with long COVID is important for the prognosis and potential treatment of the affected population. OBJECTIVE To describe the sociodemographic and clinical features of patients with long COVID who develop persistent olfactory dysfunction. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS This cross-sectional study, conducted at a rehabilitation center at a public university in the Amazon region of Brazil between September 9, 2020, and October 20, 2021, comprised 219 patients with long COVID and self-reported neurologic symptoms. Of these 219 patients, 139 received a diagnosis of chronic olfactory dysfunction, as confirmed by the Connecticut Chemosensory Clinical Research Center (CCCRC) test. EXPOSURE Clinical diagnosis of long COVID.MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURES Electronic case report forms were prepared for the collection of sociodemographic and clinical data. Patients' sense of smell was evaluated via a CCCRC test, and the association of olfactory dysfunction with aspects of daily life was recorded using a questionnaire. RESULTSOf the 219 patients included in the study, 164 (74.9%) were women, 194 (88.6%) were between 18 and 59 years of age (mean [SD] age, 43.2 [12.9] years), 206 (94.1%) had more than 9 years of education, and 115 (52.5%) had a monthly income of up to US $192.00. In the study group, 139 patients (63.5%) had some degree of olfactory dysfunction, whereas 80 patients (36.5%) had normosmia. Patients with olfactory dysfunction had a significantly longer duration of long COVID symptoms than those in the normosmia group (mean [SD], 242.7 [101.9] vs 221.0 [97.5] days; P = .01). Among patients with anosmia, there was a significant association between olfactory dysfunction and daily activities, especially in terms of impairment in hazard detection (21 of 31 patients [67.7%]), personal hygiene (21 of 31 patients [67.7%]), and food intake (21 of 31 patients [67.7%]). Univariable logistic regression analyses found that ageusia symptoms were associated with the occurrence of olfactory dysfunction (odds ratio [OR], 11.14 [95% CI,.07]; P < .001), whereas headache (OR, 0.41 [95% CI, 0.22-0.76]; P < .001) and sleep disorders (OR, 0.48 [95% CI, 0.26-0.92]; P = .02) showed an inverse association with the occurrence of olfactory dysfunction. CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCEOlfactory dysfunction is one of the most important long-term neurologic symptoms of COVID-19, with the highest prevalence seen among women, adults, and outpatients. Patients with olfactory dysfunction may experience persistent severe hyposmia or (continued) Key Points Question What are the sociodemographic and clinical characteristics of patients with long COVID and persistent olfactory dysfunction? Findings In this cross-sectional study of 219 patients with long COVID and neurologic symptoms, 64% had olfactory dysfunction, with the highest prevalence among women, adults, and outpatients. Patients with olfactory dysfunction may develop severe olfactory loss (hyposmia or anosm...

Um dos mais importantes avanços na criação de novos fármacos tem sido a utilização da modelagem molecular, pois é uma ferramenta imprescindível no processo de descoberta de novas moléculas bioativas, e no aperfeiçoamento de um protótipo já existente. A variação molecular é a mudança química de um heterogêneo, com o intuito de aprimorar sua finalidade como droga, ampliando sua eficácia, aperfeiçoando sua porcentagem e extensão de absorção, diminuindo toxicidade e modificando características físico-químicas como por exemplo a solubilidade. Objetivos: destacar a importância da expansão da modelagem molecular como técnica para pesquisa de novos agentes terapêuticos. Metodologia: Trata-se de um trabalho por meio de uma pesquisa bibliográfica dos últimos 10 anos, utilizando como instrumento de pesquisa: livros, periódicos, revistas, artigos científicos, e bases de dados nacionais e internacionais, tais como, PubMed e Scielo, utilizando-se como descritor modelagem molecular. Resultados e discussão: As técnicas computacionais permitiram que estruturas intermediárias de reações ou estados de transição hipotéticos, pudessem ser modelados e suas propriedades mensuradas, possibilitando o estudo das conformações e propriedades de uma molécula. Conclusões: Tem sido desenvolvido uma grande diversidade de programas computacionais e métodos para visualizar a geometria tridimensional (3D) e calcular as propriedades físicas das drogas, objetivando a criação de novas moléculas bioativas, cuja finalidade é a elaboração de medicamentos mais seguros, com melhor especificidade, aumento da seletividade fármaco-receptor, com o propósito de diminuir e/ou eliminar efeitos adversos e toxicidade de um fármaco.Palavras-chave: Modelagem molecular, desenvolvimento de novos fármacos, química farmacêutica.