Loss of taste or smell accurately predicts COVID-19, study findsA study shows four out of five people with recent loss of smell and/or taste tested positive for COVID-19 antibodies, and 39.8% of those did not have a cough or fever.COVID-19 is known to cause a loss of taste and/or smell, but the SARS-CoV-2 antibody status of people experiencing these symptoms was previously unknown.
A PLOS Medicine study today sought to explore the significance of loss of taste/smell as a predictor of COVID status.Researchers enrolled 590 people during the peak of the COVID-19 outbreak in London who self-reported a loss of taste/smell via telemedicine consultation in the previous month.