Alterações no olfato e/ou paladar e estado nutricional de pacientes internados pela covid-19 em um municipio do Rio Grande do Sul - Brasil

Abstract

In December 2019, the first manifestations of the largest pandemic ever recorded this century began. The first reports occurred in the city of Wuhan in 2019, in Hubei province, where it was described that some patients developed an atypical syndrome. Its main symptoms are cough, fever, shortness of breath, tiredness, myalgia, headache, ageusia, anosmia, sore throat, congestion and runny nose. The objective of this study was to investigate the nutritional consequences caused by hospitalization due to Covid-19 infection, as well as to analyze the taste and smell capacity of these patients. Cross-sectional study, approved by the Research Ethics Committee of the Federal University of Santa Maria (CAEE: 65054822.5.0000.5346), with data collection through a questionnaire that was sent online and answered by patients who were hospitalized in March 2020 to June 2022 due to complications from Covid-19 infection. 145 participants out of the 1388 contacted once responded to the questionnaire. It was found that 71 participants (50.0%) had loss of both senses, smell and taste, while 16 participants (11.0%) had loss of only one of the two senses, being (n=13; 9.0 %) loss of taste and (n=3; 2.0%) loss of smell. When asked whether the loss of smell and taste changed any dietary aspect of their daily life, the majority responded no (n = 108; 74.4%) and 35 (24.1%) responded yes. When comparing loss of smell and taste and symptoms, it was observed that symptoms such as cough, fever, headache, sore throat, muscle pain, fatigue, shortness of breath, runny nose and fatigue were symptoms that were most present in patients who have lost at least one or both senses. The average length of stay was 17.3 (± 21) days, with a median of 10 and a range of 3 – 188 days. The majority of respondents reported not having used an enteral or parenteral diet (n =100; 69.0%) and not using dietary supplements during hospital stay (n =92; 63.5%). Also, the majority of participants (n =126; 86.9%) lost weight during hospitalization, with an average loss of 11.8 kg, with a range of 2 – 40 kg. Therefore, it is concluded that the patient's changes and perceptions regarding food and their feelings when eating must be taken into account when making food prescriptions, as well as in the post-hospitalization period. It should be noted that the olfactory and gustatory capacity of several participants did not return to normal, and this fact deserves to be reported, as it is a post-Covid sequelae and could impact the maintenance of the nutritional status of those affected. Thus, the results of this study contribute to better understanding the magnitude of the loss of smell and taste and the nutritional situation of patients hospitalized for Covid-19.