One of the most common and discerning symptoms of COVID-19 is the loss of taste and smell. Since the advent of the pandemic in early 2020, researchers have been analysing this bizarre symptom, studying its manifestations, and finding ways to cure it.
The condition termed Parosmia, affects almost 60% of all COVID patients, shared the National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI), and is also identified as a pesky remnant characteristic of long COVID.
However, in recent good news, researchers may have finally discovered a cure for COVID-triggered parosmia that is also minimally invasive and does not take more than 10 minutes.
Parsomia Treatment
Dr Adam Zoga, Professor of musculoskeletal radiology, at Jefferson Health conducted this research and claimed that this treatment has been life-changing for patients of long COVID.
Researchers began the process of finding a cure by looking at a part of the Autonomic Nervous System (ANS) called the stellate ganglia. An NCBI review shared that ANS is responsible for involuntary processes including heart rate, respiration, digestion, sexual arousal, and the senses.
The stellate ganglia are nerves which run on either side of the neck, and deliver signals to the parts of the upper body like the head, neck, arms and upper chest. The researchers used what is called a stellate ganglion block to trigger ANS. Basically, they injected an anaesthetic directly into the stellate ganglia on one side of the neck, which triggered the ANS to enhance its function, plausibly restoring the lost sense of smell.
Also Read: New Study Links Low Serotonin With An Increased Risk Of Long COVID
Neck Injection To Treat Loss Of Smell
This simple injection in the side of the neck is a breakthrough in the treatment of COVID-induced parosmia, and it is non-invasive, hardly takes 10 minutes, and does not require sedation or localised numbing.
According to an NCBI review, stellate ganglion block is also indicated for a number of medical issues like cluster headaches, Raynaud's Phenomenon, cardiac arrhythmia, post-surgical pain, scleroderma, and post-traumatic stress syndrome.
"Parosmia has previously been reported as a rare disorder occurring after brain trauma, brain surgery, stroke, viral syndromes, and with some head and neck tumours. We were not entirely confident that the procedure would work for parosmia,” expressed Dr Zoga.
However, the results of the study were more than positive, as he added, “The initial patient had a tremendously positive outcome, almost immediately, with continued improvement to the point of symptom resolution at four weeks. We have been surprised at some outcomes, including near 100 per cent resolution of phantosmia in some patients, throughout the trial."
Also Read: Winters Can Cause COVID Wave, Warns UK Health Agency: Expert Shares Immunity Boosting Precautions
Using the stellate ganglion block method to treat parosmia may actually be revolutionary as no other forms of treatments have worked to date to treat the loss of smell post-COVID. However, the study is yet to be peer-reviewed and approved by the concerned authorities to establish this neck injection as the common mode of treating parosmia. Before the next steps can be planned, the study is going to be presented to the Radiological Society of North America next week.
