• Maria Rita Bianco, Domenico M Modica, Gaetano D Drago, Alfio Azzolina, Gianfranco Mattina, Massimo De Natale, Giuseppe Rossi, Marta Amata, Gaspare Canzoneri, Giovanni Manganaro, Francesco Di Gregorio, Rosario Russo, Salvatore Pricoco, Vincenzo Saita, and Eugenia Allegra.
• Otolaryngology, Department of Health Science, 9325University of Catanzaro, Italy.
• Ear Nose Throat J. 2021 Apr 1; 100 (2_suppl): 182S-185S.

ObjectivesAlteration of smell and taste has been reported in patients with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). The incidence and clinical-symptomatic manifestation of COVID-19 is different between northern and southern Italy. This study aims to evaluate the onset of alteration of smell and taste in asymptomatic and symptomatic patients in Sicily (extreme south of Italy).MethodsThis prospective cross-sectional study was performed on asymptomatic and symptomatic COVID-19 patients tested for severe acute respiratory syndrome-coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) from May 1 to May 15, 2020. A questionnaire was used for evaluating the prevalence of smell and taste disorders in COVID-19 patients before performing nasopharyngeal swab.ResultsOf the total 292 patients, 242 (83.2%) were negative for SARS-CoV-2 and 50 were positive (16.8%). Twenty-six of the 50 (52%) SARS-CoV-2 positive patients reported smell/taste disorders. Twenty-eight of the 50 (57.1%) SARS-CoV-2 positive patients were hospitalized (group A), and 22 (42.9%) were nonhospitalized (group B). The mean age in group A and group B was 45.4 ± 13.7 years and 57.0 ± 15.0, respectively (P = .007). The symptoms reported by hospitalized patients were fever (71.4%), cough (64.2%), fatigue (82.1%), and dyspnea (100%), while in nonhospitalized patients, the most reported symptoms were sore throat (72.7%), rhinorrhea (77.2%), and altered smell (81.8%). Anosmia/hyposmia reported in group A and group B was 28.5% and 81.8%, respectively (P = .001).ConclusionThese preliminary results indicate that the majority of SARS-Cov-2 positive patients in southern Italy did not require hospitalization and presented with milder symptoms or no symptoms and the alterations in smell and taste occurred.

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