It has become known that Covid-19 disease causes fever, coughing and shortness of breath, leading to respiratory difficulties ... However, specialists are currently warning about another symptom related to the emerging coronavirus, which is the loss of the sense of smell.
In recent days, ENT doctors have observed "an increase in cases of loss of smell," according to French Deputy Health Minister Jerome Salomon on Friday when presenting the daily report on the virus in France.
The minister pointed out that these cases are represented in "sudden loss" of smell without blockage in the nose, sometimes even accompanied by a loss of sense of taste.
The olfactory cases detected by those infected with the coronary newcomer "Covid-19" may occur in isolation or with other symptoms related to the virus.
Jerome Salomon pointed out that in cases of olfactory loss, "you should contact the attending physician, and avoid self-medication without consulting experts."
However, this phenomenon is still "relatively rare" and it is registered "generally" among young patients who show "non-advanced" forms of the disease, according to the official in the Ministry of Health.
On Friday, the Association of Otolaryngologists in France sent an appeal regarding the increase in these cases, which was shared by doctors on social media.
The head of the National Council of Otolaryngologists, Jean-Michel Klein, confirmed to Agence France-Presse, the existence of an "intuitive link" in these cases. He said: “Not everyone who has been tested clinically with Covid-19 has lost olfactory disease, but all isolated cases of olfactory people without local causes or infections are infected with Covid-19.”
According to the first cases reported by the network of doctors specializing in these cases, most of the patients involved in these cases are young people between the ages of 23 and 45 years. The injuries also affected many health professionals, including a large number of otolaryngologists.
Jean-Michel Klein explained that "those who feel their sense of smell should quarry themselves as a precautionary measure, and they should wear a mask even at the family level."
Contrary to what happens in traditional cases of olfactory loss, the doctor recommends not to take corticosteroids "that reduce immune defenses" and not to clean the nose because this "may transfer the virus from the nasal mucosa to the lungs."
In the light of these first observations, the doctors who specialize in the field have notified the auditors of general medicine and the Ministry of Health, and they will study this phenomenon.
And Jean-Michel Klein pointed out that German and American studies had concluded with the same symptoms.