Author/Authors :
Bagheri, Hamidreza ENT and Head and Neck Research Center and Department The Five Senses Institute - Iran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran , Asghari, Alimohamad Skull Base Research Center - The Five Senses Institute - Iran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran , Farhadi, Mohammad ENT and Head and Neck Research Center and Department The Five Senses Institute - Iran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran , Shamshiri, Ahmad Reza Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics - School of Public Health - Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran , Kabir, Ali Minimally Invasive Surgery Research Center - Iran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran , Kamrava, Kamran ENT and Head and Neck Research Center and Department The Five Senses Institute - Iran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran , Jalessi, Maryam Skull Base Research Center - The Five Senses Institute - Iran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran , Mohebbi, Alireza ENT and Head and Neck Research Center and Department The Five Senses Institute - Iran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran , Alizadeh, Rafieh ENT and Head and Neck Research Center and Department The Five Senses Institute - Iran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran , Honarmand, Ali Asghar Iran Medical Council, Tehran, Iran , Ghalehbaghi, Babak ENT and Head and Neck Research Center and Department The Five Senses Institute - Iran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran , Salimi, Alireza Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran , Dehghani Firouzabadi, Fatemeh ENT and Head and Neck Research Center and Department The Five Senses Institute - Iran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
Abstract :
Background: The occurrence of anosmia/hyposmia during novel Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) may indicate a relationship
between coincidence of olfactory dysfunction and coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). This study aimed to assess the frequency of
self-reported anosmia/hyposmia during COVID-19 epidemic in Iran.
Methods: This population-based cross sectional study was performed through an online questionnaire from March 12 to 17, 2020.
Cases from all provinces of Iran voluntarily participated in this study. Patients completed a 33-item patient-reported online questionnaire,
including smell and taste dysfunction and their comorbidities, along with their basic characteristics and past medical histories. The inclusion
criteria were self-reported anosmia/hyposmia during the past 4 weeks, from the start of COVID-19 epidemic in Iran.
Results: A total of 10 069 participants aged 32.5±8.6 (7-78) years took part in this study, of them 71.13% women and 81.68%
nonsmokers completed the online questionnaire. The correlation between the number of olfactory disorders and reported COVID-19
patients in all provinces up to March 17, 2020 was highly significant (Spearman correlation coefficient = 0.87, P< 0.001). A sudden
onset of olfactory dysfunction was reported in 76.24% of the participations and persistent anosmia in 60.90% from the start of COVID-
19 epidemic. In addition, 80.38% of participants reported concomitant olfactory and gustatory dysfunctions.
Conclusion: An outbreak of olfactory dysfunction occurred in Iran during the COVID-19 epidemic. The exact mechanisms by which
anosmia/hyposmia occurred in patients with COVID-19 call for further investigations.
Keywords :
Coronavirus , COVID , COVID-19 , SARS-CoV-2 , Anosmia , Smell , Hyposmia , Dysgeusia , Taste loss , Gustatory , Olfactory , Olfaction , Infection , ENT
