Global study: How does Covid-19 affect the sense of smell and taste?

FAU sensory researchers participating in international consortium

Over the last few weeks, more and more people infected with the coronavirus have been complaining that they can’t smell or taste anything any more, suggesting that a loss of the sense of taste and smell may indicate an infection with Covid-19. The Global Consortium for Chemosensory Research (GCCR), a consortium made up of more than 400 researchers from all over the world, has now launched a broad-based online study aimed at recording whether Covid-19 patients experience a loss of taste and smell, as well as any changes to sensory perception within the mouth. Two researchers from FAU, Prof. Dr. Jessica Freiherr, professor for neuroscience of sensory perception, and Prof. Dr. Andrea Büttner, Chair of Aroma and Smell Research, are involved in the study.

‘Several publications have already been published on whether the loss of taste and smell is a symptom of Covid-19. Findings indicate that approximately 80 percent of patients reported a loss of their sense of taste and smell,’ says Jessica Freiherr. As yet, no widespread studies have been conducted on the topic. If valid figures were available on a global scale, however, the loss of the sense of taste and smell could officially be included in the list of symptoms caused by Covid-19. This would give medical institutions a basis for testing patients for Covid-19 even if they mainly report a loss of their sense of taste and smell rather than the other symptoms associated with the disease.

The study not only involves researchers focussing on aroma research but also neuroscientists, psychologists and ear, nose and throat specialists, and Jessica Freiherr hopes that it will provide detailed insights into a symptom which has been neglected until now: ‘As a loss of the sense of smell is often experienced during a common cold, for example if you have a blocked up nose, researchers are keen to gain a deeper understanding of how the various aspects of the symptom interact, in particular how intensely it is experienced by patients, as well as how long it persists and how often it is experienced.’

In order to ensure the results paint as representative a picture as possible, the organisers are still looking for a large number of participants from Germany who have either had a Covid-19 infection or a common cold (control group) in the last few weeks and are willing to spend approximately 10 minutes of their time completing an anonymous online survey. Anyone interested in taking part can contact the researchers below.

Further information:

Prof. Dr. Jessica Freiherr
Professor for neuroscience of sensory perception at FAU
jessica.freiherr@fau.de