ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) infection represents a worldwide critical health burden from the sanitary perspective. This disease's symptoms range from a mild flu-like form to a severe life-threatening respiratory disease and respiratory failure. Several patients, however, remain paucisymptomatic. Among the symptoms that seem relevant are the changes in taste and smell, regardless of the disease's severity. METHODS: Data from patients affected by COVID-19 infection, hospitalized from 15 to 29 April, 2020, were analyzed. Questionnaires about smell, taste, and nasal function were administered to all, and a proportion also received the Quick olfactory Sniffin' Sticks Test (q-Sticks) to objectivate the presence of anosmia or hyposmia. The results of instruments and Q-Sticks were then compared. RESULTS: Thirty-seven patients (20 males, 54.1%), with a mean age 0f 69.19 years (SD = 17.96; median 76, IQR: 63-82) were evaluated. Among the patients, 8 (22%) were asymptomatic. Out of the remaining 29 patients, 28 (97%) had fever, 19 (66%) asthenia, 11 (38%) dry cough, 10 (34%) dyspnea, and 6 (21%) gastroenteric symptoms. The q-Sticks test was performed on 27 patients and showed that 6 with anosmia, and 16 patients had hyposmia, where only 5 (14%) patients complained of loss of smell by conducting the questionnaires. CONCLUSION: Although olfactory disturbances may be secondary to other factors, a sudden onset of anosmia or hyposmia should be assessed as a possible symptom of COVID-19 infection. The use of questionnaires or anamnestic collection is sometimes not enough, while adding to them a simple test such as the q-Sticks test can provide more accurate and reliable data. A simple, easy-to-perform, and reliable tool (q-Sticks) for olfactory disorders assessment can be administered to identify the real size of anosmia in patients with COVID-19 infection and detect the early stage of infection or paucisymptomatic patients, therefore becoming important to reduce the spreading of the pandemic.
ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: Asthma prevalence among COVID-19 patients seems to be surprisingly low. However the clinical profile of COVID-19 asthmatic patients and potential determinants of higher susceptibility/worse outcome have been scarcely investigated. We aimed to describe the prevalence and features of asthmatic patients hospitalized for COVID-19 and to explore the association between their clinical asthma profile and COVID-19 severity. METHODS: Medical records of patients admitted to COVID-Units of six Italian cities major hospitals were reviewed. Demographic and clinical data were analyzed and compared according to the COVID-19 outcome (death/need for ventilation vs discharge at home without requiring invasive procedures). RESULTS: Within the COVID-Units population (n = 2000) asthma prevalence was 2.1%. Among the asthmatics the mean age was 61.1 years and 60% were females. Around half of patients were atopic, blood eosinophilia was normal in most of patients. An asthma exacerbation in the 6 months before the Covid-Unit admittance was reported by 18% of patients. 24% suffered from GINA step 4-5 asthma, and 5% were under biologic treatment. 31% of patients were not on regular treatment and a negligible use of oral steroid was recorded. Within the worse outcome group, a prevalence of males was detected (64 vs 29%, p = 0.026); they suffered from more severe asthma (43 vs 14%, p = 0.040) and were more frequently current or former smokers (62 vs 25%, p = 0.038). CONCLUSIONS: Our report, the first including a large COVID-19 hospitalized Italian population, confirms the low prevalence of asthma. On the other side patients with GINA 4/5 asthma, and those not adequately treated, should be considered at higher risk.