High prevalence of long-term olfactory disorders in healthcare workers after COVID-19: A case-control study.
Johannes FrasnelliArnaud TognettiAnja L WinterEvelina ThunellMats J OlssonNina GreilertJonas K OlofssonSebastian HavervallCharlotte ThålinJohan N LundströmPublished in: PloS one (2024)
In summary, 65% of healthcare workers experienced parosmia/hyposmia 15 months after contracting COVID-19. When compared to a control group, the prevalence of olfactory dysfunction in the population increased by 41 percentage points. Parosmia symptoms were still lingering two-and-a half years later in 24% of SARS-CoV-2 infected individuals. Given the amount of time between infection and testing, it is possible that the olfactory problems may not be fully reversible in a plurality of individuals.