Topical Administration of Mometasone Is Not Helpful in Post-COVID-19 Olfactory Dysfunction

Research output: Contribution to journalResearch articleContributedpeer-review

Contributors

Abstract

Persistent olfactory dysfunction is a major concern post-COVID-19, affecting up to 5% of all patients. Different therapeutic options, including mometasone nasal spray, have been recommended, only some of which have been validated for post-COVID-19 olfactory dysfunction. In this study we psychophysically assessed the effect of intranasally applied mometasone furoate on the recovery of olfaction. The spray was applied with a long applicator so that the olfactory cleft could be reached effectively. After olfactory dysfunction had been confirmed psychophysically using Sniffin’ Sticks, patients were randomly assigned to two different treatment arms: the study group (n = 40) underwent olfactory training and intranasal administration of mometasone furoate twice daily, whereas the control group (n = 46) performed olfactory training only. After a study duration of three months, psychophysical testing of olfaction was repeated using Sniffin’ Sticks. We found no benefit of an additional topical administration of mometasone furoate compared to olfactory training alone. These results psychophysically confirm two previous studies which were based on patients’ subjective self-ratings. Our findings are in contrast to current recommendations for the management of olfactory dysfunction post-COVID-19, which might have to be adapted accordingly.

Details

Original languageEnglish
Article number1483
Number of pages7
Journal Life : open access journal
Volume12 (2022)
Issue number10
Publication statusPublished - 24 Sept 2022
Peer-reviewedYes

External IDs

ORCID /0000-0001-9713-0183/work/146645396
ORCID /0000-0003-1311-8000/work/158767536

Keywords

Keywords

  • COVID-19, mometasone, olfaction, olfactory training, smell

Library keywords