Staff at London NHS Trust trust lost sense of smell before it was added to symptoms list

Almost two-thirds of staff lost sense of smell before it was added to symptoms list Credit: PA

Almost two-thirds of staff at a London NHS trust had lost their sense of smell before anosmia was added to national guidance as a coronavirus symptom, a study indicated.

Researchers asked staff at London's Barts Health NHS Trust to complete a questionnaire in the week of April 17 to 23, at the height of lockdown.

At this time anosmia - a loss of taste or smell - was not listed as an official coronavirus symptom and Covid-19 testing among NHS workers was limited to those displaying symptoms of a new continuous cough or a high temperature over 37.8C.

Coronavirus sign outside St. Bartholomew's Hospital, London. Credit: PA

Public Health England added anosmia to the list of symptoms for Covid-19 on May 18, after which staff displaying the symptom were required to test and self-isolate for seven days.

The study, led by the University of East Anglia in collaboration with University College London, found that 168 out of the 262 healthcare workers (64.1%) who completed the questionnaire reported losing their sense of smell or taste at some point between mid-February and mid-April.

Coronavirus testing centre Credit: PA

Just 73 (27.9%) of the 262 participants had been tested for Covid-19 at the time, with 56 of these (76.7%) confirmed positive.

Staff testing for Covid-19 at Barts Health NHS Trust has been available since late March.

He said the research also indicated a "strong association between smell loss and the positive Covid-19 test results", with those who had lost their sense of smell being almost five times more likely to test positive.

The study also involved a follow-up survey in May, in which 47% of respondents reported that their sense of smell and taste had completely recovered.

A further 42% said they had partially recovered their sense of smell and taste, but just over 7% still suffered anosmia.

St Bartholomew's Hospital Credit: PA

The survey has also been running in two Norfolk hospitals and in two hospitals in the North West with the responses of more than 1,000 healthcare workers due to be published soon. The research is published in journal The Lancet Microbe.

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