Loss of taste and smell is on UK’s list of symptoms
Holohan to look at adding condition as warning sign
THE National Public Health Emergency Team (NPHET) will consider adding losing your sense of taste and smell to the list of Covid-19 symptoms after the UK made the move yesterday.
In the UK, anyone who has lost their sense of taste and smell – a condition known as anosmia – will have to self-isolate for seven days. This comes after concerns thousands of cases were being missed.
When asked about this yesterday, Chief Medical Officer Dr Tony Holohan said anosmia ‘seems to be a particular feature of this illness’. He said: ‘I think we will give some consideration to making some of those technical adjustments, which will be the advice we give to GPs. We look at the case definition on a continuing basis, we’ve made a series of adjustments to it.
‘It is important to say that at any time the case definition is a guide for a GP who is making a referral… If a GP has a concern about a patient who doesn’t strictly fit the case definition, there is nothing to inhibit a GP from making a referral of that particular patient.
‘What we are doing at the moment with GPs and the adjustment we are making is in relation to the testing of contacts. I think what we want to avoid doing is giving the GPs a new and different piece of guidance every day.’
In order for someone to get a test in Ireland, they have to present with either a fever, a cough or shortness of breath.
In addition, a test will be provided if you have been in close contact with someone who had coronavirus and you start to experience any of the following symptoms: fever, cough, shortness of breath, blocked nose or sinus, stuffed or runny nose, sore throat, or wheezing.
Meanwhile, scientists in the UK had warned that up to 70,000 cases were potentially being missed at any one time because anosmia wasn’t officially recognised by ministers there.
Doctors warned the British government about the condition eight weeks ago but a panel of researchers concluded that it wasn’t significant enough to be counted.
Since then the World Health Organisation, the EU and the US, have all started including the symptom among a list of key warning signs. Yesterday, the UK’s four chief medical officers jointly announced that anyone with either a loss or change to their sense of taste or smell should selfisolate for seven days.