Cochrane · systematic review · CD013877

Interventions for the prevention of persistent post‐COVID‐19 olfactory dysfunction

Webster, KE, O'Byrne, L, MacKeith, S, et al. · Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews · 2022 · Cochrane Library

ENT2 versionsAMSTAR 2: not assessed

SoF tableOnly the outcomes this review put in its Summary of Findings table are listed (the Cochrane Handbook caps them at about seven per comparison). Its other analyses are not shown here.

Questions

current version

GRADE rated

No studies

Included studies

No studies 9 · 52.9%Ungraded 0 · 0%Very low 6 · 35.3%Low 2 · 11.8%Moderate 0 · 0%High 0 · 0%

Ungraded means an effect was reported without a GRADE rating; it is not a gap. No studies means the review found nothing to answer the question. The six categories are a display order, not a score.

Questions and results

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Intranasal steroid spray compared to no intervention/placebo for the prevention of persistent post‐COVID‐19 olfactory dysfunction

Population: people with olfactory dysfunction for less than 4 weeks following COVID‐19 infection

10 questions

Outcome	Effect	Evidence	Status / GRADE
Presence of normal olfactory function Assessed by participants as a score of 10 on a VAS (range 0 to 10) ≤ 4 weeks Intranasal steroid spray vs no intervention/placebo	RR 1.19 [0.85, 1.68]	1 study · 100 participants	Very low Downgraded: risk of bias
Presence of normal olfactory function Intranasal steroid spray vs no intervention/placebo	RR 2.31 [1.16, 4.64]	1 study · 77 participants	Very low Downgraded: risk of bias, imprecision
Serious adverse events Intranasal steroid spray vs no intervention/placebo	no estimate extracted	1 study · 77 participants	Very low Downgraded: risk of bias, imprecision
Change in sense of smell Assessed by participants (VAS, higher score = better, range 0 to 10) ≤ 4 weeks Intranasal steroid spray vs no intervention/placebo	no estimate extracted	1 study · 77 participants	Very low Downgraded: risk of bias, imprecision
Change in sense of smell Assessed by participants (VAS, higher score = better, scale 0 to 10) > 4 weeks to 3 months Intranasal steroid spray vs no intervention/placebo	no estimate extracted	1 study · 100 participants	Very low Downgraded: risk of bias, imprecision
Change in sense of smell Intranasal steroid spray vs no intervention/placebo	no estimate extracted	1 study · 77 participants	Low Downgraded: risk of bias, imprecision
Prevalence of parosmia Intranasal steroid spray vs no intervention/placebo	no estimate extracted	NR	No studies
Change in sense of taste Intranasal steroid spray vs no intervention/placebo	no estimate extracted	NR	No studies
Disease‐related quality of life Intranasal steroid spray vs no intervention/placebo	no estimate extracted	NR	No studies
Other adverse effects Intranasal steroid spray vs no intervention/placebo	no estimate extracted	1 study · 77 participants	Very low Downgraded: risk of bias, imprecision

Intranasal steroid drops compared to placebo for the prevention of persistent post‐COVID‐19 olfactory dysfunction

Population: participants with olfactory dysfunction following COVID‐19 for ≤ 15 days

7 questions

Outcome	Effect	Evidence	Status / GRADE
Presence of normal olfactory function Assessed by participants > 4 weeks to 3 months Intranasal steroid drops vs placebo	RR 1 [0.89, 1.11]	1 study · 248 participants	Low Downgraded: risk of bias
Serious adverse effects Intranasal steroid drops vs placebo	no estimate extracted	NR	No studies
Change in sense of smell Intranasal steroid drops vs placebo	no estimate extracted	NR	No studies
Prevalence of parosmia Intranasal steroid drops vs placebo	no estimate extracted	NR	No studies
Change in sense of taste Intranasal steroid drops vs placebo	no estimate extracted	NR	No studies
Disease‐related quality of life Intranasal steroid drops vs placebo	no estimate extracted	NR	No studies
Other adverse effects Intranasal steroid drops vs placebo	no estimate extracted	NR	No studies