One of the most common symptoms of COVID-19 was loss of smell during illness. This loss of smell, which is more intense and different from that experienced in an ordinary flu or cold, has not improved in some cases, even after months.
Currently, many people are facing the problem of permanent loss of smell after COVID-19. Imagine having an illness and suddenly losing your sense of smell… Fortunately, research has come to the point where it can answer what’s causing this problem.
Defeated while our bodies ‘fight’
The results of the study, which was carried out with 24 different people, including 9 people who experienced permanent loss of smell after COVID-19, were published in the journal Science Translational Medicine. Olfactory epithelial samples were taken from the people participating in the study. Examined tissues revealed that our bodies lose their sense of smell while ‘fighting’.
In the olfactory epithelial samples taken from the nose, intense amounts of T cells, which play an active role in the body’s fight against infection, were detected. However, the presence of T cells damages olfactory epithelial cells in the region. So much so that the researchers observed that the inflammatory process still continues even in tissues where SARS-CoV-2 was not detected.
While the number of olfactory neurons was lower in tissues from participants who lost their sense of smell, the researchers also observed that some neurons continued to heal themselves even after T-cell bombardment. According to the research team, this is a positive observation.
Loss of smell may not return for months or even years, but there is hope for a cure.
Neurobiologist Bradley Goldstein from the research team expressed his research goals with the words, “We need to better understand why these people will continue to experience permanent loss of smell for months to years after being infected with SARS-CoV-2.” emphasizes that it also reveals hope for treatment.
“We hope that modulating the abnormal immune response or repair processes in the nose of these patients may help at least partially restore their sense of smell,” says Goldstein. In other words, it is too early to talk about the existence of a permanent solution that will completely restore the senses.
The research team also states that there may be a similar reason behind the so-called ‘long COVID’, which causes symptoms such as extreme fatigue, shortness of breath and “brain fog” that makes it difficult to concentrate. Further research is needed on this subject and further clarification is needed.
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