Hearing loss is the commonest sensory deficit among humans, affecting 466 million people worldwide. Early detection is the key to hearing rehabilitation, as speech and language develops early in the childhood. Scarcity of human resources and infrastructure in developing countries like India leads to difficulty in implementation of hearing screening programmes. Tele otology is very fruitful methodology in providing health care facility from distant site to the doorsteps of needy individuals. The action initiated in the field of tele otology in India was reviewed at electronic databases: Pubmed, Google scholar, Medline, Cochrane library, science direct and author mapper using the keywords ‘tele otology’ and ‘tele audiometry’ in January 2021. Eligible studies were those related to tele otology and tele audiometry in India. A total of 16 articles were shortlisted for the present study. Tele hearing testing was satisfactory for the parents in regard to accessibility, testing process and counselling. Tele audiometry surveillance shows better overall follow-up compliance rate then in-person audiological surveillance. During covid 19 pandemic virtual approach to the patient through video calling and telephone calls proved handy approach, ensuring safety profile of both health care professionals and patients. Even Tele ABR conducted in tele van shows similar results as in face-to-face mode ABR. Tele otology should be considered by the service providers and policy makers while planning for hearing screening programmes for both new-born and school going children in view of its reliability, low-cost, non-invasive and portability. The village health workers (VHWs) should be well trained in assisting tele practice and internet connectivity should be well established. Tele otology looks very promising in providing health services through the ever-expanding reach of global connectivity.
The pandemic COVID-19 has relentlessly caused havoc to human life since its outbreak in December 2019. The disease has been a challenge for all. The clinical manifestations of Covid-19 ranges from no symptoms at all to severe acute respiratory distress syndrome. Anosmia being one of the important clinical features of COVID-19 has always been overlooked by the Indian population. This formed the background for this study. Aim To identify the incidence of anosmia reported in COVID- 19 patients in India. Materials and Methods Literature search was carried out from January 2020 to March 2021 in databases like PUBMED and Google Scholar using the key words “ANOSMIA”, “HYPOSMIA” and “OLFACTORY DYSFUNCTION” in conjunction with “COVID-19”, “SARS-COV-2”, and “CORONAVIRUS”. Boolean operators were used to narrow and broaden the search. The search yielded sixteen eligible articles. Result The scrutiny of the 16 articles revealed an incidence range of anosmia from 9.2% to 82% and an average anosmia incidence rate of 30.19%. The cumulative incidence rate of anosmia in those studies where objective analysis was done is 52.2% and 16.4% for subjective analysis. Discussion The prevalence of anosmia in Indian population is found to be much lesser than that reported by European countries due to ethnicity or negligence. Objective evaluation of anosmia in COVID-19 patients increases the incidence of anosmia drastically. Hence objective evaluations such as UPIST, SNIFFING STICK test, etc. is to be promoted. This study also Emphasises the lack of common gold standard testing for olfaction like vision and hearing.
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