Many people infected with COVID-19 have faced the problem of losing their sense of smell and taste for a long time. However, British scientists have found a way to address this issue. According to The Guardian, surgeons at University College London are using a surgical procedure called septorinoplasty for this purpose.
Long-term effects of COVID-19 and loss of smell
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), 6 out of every 100 people infected with COVID-19 may develop a long-term form of the disease. This can lead to the loss of the sense of smell and taste for months or even years. So far, various medications have been unable to resolve this issue.
Septorinoplasty – a method to restore smell
Surgeons at University College London have used septorinoplasty, a procedure that expands the nasal passages, to restore smell and taste. As demonstrated by this surgery, when the nasal passages are expanded by 30 percent, air reaches the receptors that control smells more effectively, initiating the process of restoring smell.
Experts' opinions and results
Professor Peter Andrews, a senior consultant in the rhinology department conducting the research, emphasized that this method "awakens" the olfactory mucosa and tunes it. The procedure was successfully performed on 12 patients who had lost their sense of smell for an extended period due to COVID-19. Currently, all of them have regained normal smell and taste abilities.
The new method offers hope
Scientists are planning to further investigate this method and test it on more patients. If this method is widely adopted, it could provide hope to thousands of people who have lost their sense of smell and taste due to COVID-19.
