The importance of early detection of ENT symptoms in mild-to-moderate COVID-19

xlomafota13 shared this article with you from Inoreader The importance of early detection of ENT symptoms in mild-to-moderate COVID-19 Via Acta Otorhinolaryngol Ital Acta Otorhinolaryngol Ital. 2021 Apr;41(2):101-107. doi: 10.14639/0392-100X-N1038. ABSTRACT OBJECTIVES: Patients with coronavirus disease-19 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) may present with a wide range of symptoms. In this paper, a detailed characterisation of mild-to-moderate ear, nose nd throat (ENT) symptoms is presented with the aim of recognising the disease early to help reduce further spread and progression. MET HODS: A total of 230 cases testing positive for SARS-CoV-2 and 134 negative controls were recruited for a case-control analysis. Symptoms were analysed using the Acute Respiratory Tract Infections Questionnaire, while other symptoms were investigated by ad hoc questions. RESULTS: Among the study samples (n = 364), 149 were males and 215 were females with age ranging from 20 to 89 years (mean 52.3). Four main groups of symptoms were obtained: influenza-like symptoms, ENT-symptoms, breathing issues and asthenia-related symptoms, representing 72%, 69%, 64% and 53% of overall referred clinical manifestations, respectively. ENT symptoms, breathing issues and influenza-like symptoms were associated with positivity to SARS-CoV-2, whereas asthenia-related symptoms did not show a significant association with SARS-CoV-2 infection after controlling for other symptoms, comorbidities and demographic characteristics. CONCLUSIONS: ENT symptoms are equally represented with influe nza-like ones as presenting symptoms of COVID-19. Patients with ENT symptoms should be investigated for early identification and prevention of SARS-CoV-2 spread. PMID:34028454 | DOI:10.14639/0392-100X-N1038 View on the web Inoreader. Take back control of your news feed. Follow us on Twitter and Facebook.