News > Study reveals how COVID-19 smell loss differs from a common cold

Study reveals how COVID-19 smell loss differs from a common cold

The main differences found are that, although COVID-19 patients also lose their sense of smell, they can breathe freely, do not tend to have a runny or blocked nose, and they cannot detect bitter or sweet tastes.

These findings lend weight to the theory that COVID-19 infects the brain and central nervous system. The research team hopes that their work could help develop smell and taste tests for fast COVID-19 screening – in primary care and emergency departments.