As the Covid-19 virus evolves, so do the symptoms. In fact, the new variants currently in circulation no longer cause loss of smell or taste.
SARS-Cov-2
Even though the current cases of Covid-19 are down in the US the disease is still causing fatalities and hospitalizations. According to the CDC Between July 23 and July 29, there were 9056 hospitalizations due to Covid-19 of which 1% ended in death. Covid-19 continues to evolve and, depending on the variants in circulation, the symptoms are no longer the same.
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Loss of sense of smell a rare symptom now
The results of a new study published in the American Academy of Otolaryngology journal are quite positive when it comes to the severity of the symptoms of Covid-19. The researchers showed that fewer and fewer patients are suffering from loss of taste and smell. Only about 3% of the people affected by Covid are currently losing their sense of smell.
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Covid-19 evolves and clashes with immunity and vaccination
For the researchers, the disappearance of these symptoms – the loss of the sense of smell and taste – can be explained by two main reasons: the immunity that humans gradually acquire against Covid-19 and vaccination.
To arrive at their findings, the researchers examined data on more than seven million patients who tested positive for coronavirus between April 2020 and October 2022. They then calculated the risk of loss of smell and taste during the periods when the infection was at its peak and categorized them by alpha, delta, and omicron variants. Results: gradually, patients lost less of their sense of taste and smell. These symptoms are no longer characteristic signs of the disease, although they were for a long time.
But for patients who have been affected by one of these symptoms, the battle is not over. In fact, a study published in the journal The Laryngoscope last June found that a quarter of patients affected in 2021 had not regained their sense of smell and taste.
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References
Reiter, E. R., Coelho, D. H., French, E., Costanzo, R. M., & N3C Consortium. (2023). COVID‐19‐Associated Chemosensory Loss Continues to Decline. American Academy of Otolaryngology–Head and Neck Surgery. https://doi.org/10.1002/ohn.384
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2023, August 7). COVID Data Tracker. https://covid.cdc.gov/covid-data-tracker
Mitchell, M. B., Workman, A. D., Rathi, V. K., & Bhattacharyya, N. (2023). Smell and Taste Loss Associated with COVID‐19 Infection. The Laryngoscope. https://doi.org/10.1002/lary.30802
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