Testing for anosmia and ageusia in patients presenting to the emergency department with suspected coronavirus disease 2019 in Saudi Arabia

Abstract

Objective This study investigated the role of objective olfactory dysfunction (OD) and gustatory dysfunction (GD) testing among patients with suspected coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) who presented with respiratory symptoms. Methods A prospective, blinded, observational study was conducted in the emergency units of two tertiary hospitals. Participants were asked to identify scents in the pocket smell test (PST) and flavors in four different solutions in the gustatory dysfunction test (GDT). We assessed the level of agreement between objective findings and self-reported symptoms. We evaluated the diagnostic accuracy of chemosensory dysfunction for diagnosing severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection. Results Of 250 participants, 74 (29.6%) were SARS-CoV-2-positive. There was slight agreement between self-reported symptoms and objective findings (kappa = 0.13 and 0.10 for OD and GD, respectively). OD assessed by the PST was independently associated with COVID-19 (adjusted odds ratio = 1.89, 95% confidence interval, 1.04–3.46). This association was stronger when OD was combined with objective GD, cough, and fever (adjusted odds ratio = 7.33, 95% confidence interval, 1.17–45.84). Conclusions Neither the PST nor GDT alone are useful screening tools for COVID-19. However, a diagnostic scale based on objective OD, GD, fever, and cough may help triage patients with suspected COVID-19.

COVID-19 Symptoms Time Trend: Comparison Between 2020, 2021, 2022 and 2023 Years in a General Medicine Office in Toledo, Spain

“…Presentations of COVID-19 in unvaccinated people in this first period of the pandemic (In 2020 there were still no vaccines against COVID-19) have ranged from mild/ asymptomatic symptoms to severe disease and mortality. Thus, the most frequently reported initial signs or symptoms in the first 12 US patients confirmed with COVID-19 from January 20 to February 5, 2020, were cough and fever; during the course of the disease reported cough, fever, diarrhea, and vomiting [46][47][48][49][50][51].…”

Sars-Cov-2 Dependent Variables are most important in Epidemiological Triad during Covid-19 Pandemic Evolution. A Comparison Study of Unvaccinated Covid19 Cases in 2020 with Not Fully Vaccinated Covid-19 Cases in 2021

“…The first reports from China since late 2019 showed that these patients had symptoms of a lower respiratory tract infection, including cough, fever, and shortness of breath. Later, with the significant expansion of this disease, reports indicated other prevalent symptoms of the upper respiratory tract, such as sore throat, nasal congestion, and rhinorrhea, in addition to headache, fatigue, myalgia, anosmia, and ageusia (37). On the other hand, it has been found that the frequency of the main symptoms in 2020 (cough, fever and loss of smell), was different depending on the country and the presence of underlying health conditions such as asthma and diabetes (17).…”