Have you lost your sense of smell after corona? Now researchers may have discovered why – NRK Norway – Overview of news from different parts of the country

Loss of smell and taste has become a well-known corona symptom for many. For the most part, this was short-lived and their senses returned when they recovered.

But many have experienced that their sense of smell never returned or was significantly impaired after the illness.

Scientists have long been trying to find the answer to why this happens.

Nose or brain damage?

A central question is whether it is due to the virus damaging areas of the brain that process information about smell, by damaging sensory cells in the nose, or a combination of both.

Now he can American researchers they found the answer, according to The Guardian.

The explanation could be that those who have lost their sense of smell after coronary heart disease still have an ongoing immune reaction that destroys cells in the nose, writes The Guardian.

Doctors analyzed the nasal tissue of corona patients. They saw that patients with long-term odor problems had inflammatory immune cells in the nasal lining. This can destroy very central sensory nerve cells in the nose, cells that pick up smells.

They found this unusual immune response only in patients who had lost their sense of smell over a period of several months, according to the paper.

The immune response continued even though the patients no longer had any proven coronary artery disease.

This could indicate that the process destroying the “smell cells” continued after the viral infection had ended.

It can apply to 15 million people

Researchers from three American universities studied tissue samples from a total of 24 corona patients, nine of whom had lost their sense of smell for at least four months.

Researchers saw that patients who had experienced long-term loss of smell also had significantly fewer sensory neurons that process smell, according to The Guardian.

At least 5 percent of those who lose their sense of smell during coronary heart disease have not regained their sense of smell quickly or completely after recovering. according to the BMJ medical journal.

Worldwide, this amounts to about 15 million people, according to one relationship since July of this year.

– One of the greatest mysteries

– Loss of smell has been one of the biggest mysteries, and these findings may help us answer it along with other previous findings, says Danny Altmann, professor of immunology at Imperial College London.

Many have had to seek help after having problems with smell after corona disease.

Gjøvik hospital is one of the few places in Norway with a separate offer for this patient group.