Pioneering Surgery Helps Patients With Long Covid Regain Sense Of Smell

[RAMROD 117,049]

Doctors in London have successfully restored a sense of smell and taste in patients who lost it due to long Covid with pioneering surgery that expands their nasal airways to kickstart their recovery.

Most patients diagnosed with Covid-19 recover fully. But the infectious disease can lead to serious long-term effects. About six in every 100 people who get Covid develop long Covid, with millions of people affected globally, according to the World Health Organization.

 

Losing a sense of smell and taste are among more than 200 different symptoms reported by people with long Covid.

Now surgeons at University College London Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust (UCLH) have cured a dozen patients, each of whom had suffered a profound loss of smell after a Covid infection. All had experienced the problem for more than two years and other treatments, such as smell training and corticosteroids, had failed.

In a study aiming to find new ways to resolve the issue, surgeons tried a technique called functional septorhinoplasty (fSRP), which is typically used to correct any deviation of the nasal septum, increasing the size of nasal passageways.

This boosts airflow into the olfactory region, at the roof of the nasal cavity, which controls smell. Doctors said the surgery enabled an increased amount of odorants – chemical compounds that have a smell – to reach the roof of the nose, where sense of smell is located.

They believe that increasing the delivery of odorants to this area “kickstarts” smell recovery in patients who have lost their sense of smell to long Covid.

Prof Peter Andrews, a senior consultant surgeon in rhinology and facial plastic surgery who led the research, said surgery increased the airway by about 30%, so airflow also increased by about 30%.

In the trial, 12 patients had fSRP and a control group of 13 patients continued with smell training – sniffing the same scents repeatedly.

All patients who had fSRP reported an improved sense of smell compared with none of the patients in the sniff test group, where 40% actually reported a worsening sense of smell. The results were published in the journal Facial Plastic Surgery.

One of the patients, Penelope Newman, 27, from south London, said her taste and smell had “almost returned to normal” after the operation.

 

 

https://www.theguardian.com/society/2025/mar/07/long-covid-patients-regain-sense-smell-taste-functional-septorhinoplasty-surgery

[Taumaturg0 1,355]

But can it give Madge her taste back ?

[NotoriousEden 621]

Long Covid is real?

[PartySick 172,537]

1 hour ago, NotoriousEden said:

Long Covid is real?

Yes! 

Ever since I caught covid years ago my actual lung capacity has been noticably worse and I got off light, some people have worse covid symptoms that just will not go away

[SlowLoris 1,204]

Woah cool!!

[southpaw773 4,366]

4 hours ago, RAMROD said:

Doctors in London have successfully restored a sense of smell and taste in patients who lost it due to long Covid with pioneering surgery that expands their nasal airways to kickstart their recovery.

Most patients diagnosed with Covid-19 recover fully. But the infectious disease can lead to serious long-term effects. About six in every 100 people who get Covid develop long Covid, with millions of people affected globally, according to the World Health Organization.

 

Losing a sense of smell and taste are among more than 200 different symptoms reported by people with long Covid.

Now surgeons at University College London Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust (UCLH) have cured a dozen patients, each of whom had suffered a profound loss of smell after a Covid infection. All had experienced the problem for more than two years and other treatments, such as smell training and corticosteroids, had failed.

In a study aiming to find new ways to resolve the issue, surgeons tried a technique called functional septorhinoplasty (fSRP), which is typically used to correct any deviation of the nasal septum, increasing the size of nasal passageways.

This boosts airflow into the olfactory region, at the roof of the nasal cavity, which controls smell. Doctors said the surgery enabled an increased amount of odorants – chemical compounds that have a smell – to reach the roof of the nose, where sense of smell is located.

They believe that increasing the delivery of odorants to this area “kickstarts” smell recovery in patients who have lost their sense of smell to long Covid.

Prof Peter Andrews, a senior consultant surgeon in rhinology and facial plastic surgery who led the research, said surgery increased the airway by about 30%, so airflow also increased by about 30%.

In the trial, 12 patients had fSRP and a control group of 13 patients continued with smell training – sniffing the same scents repeatedly.

All patients who had fSRP reported an improved sense of smell compared with none of the patients in the sniff test group, where 40% actually reported a worsening sense of smell. The results were published in the journal Facial Plastic Surgery.

One of the patients, Penelope Newman, 27, from south London, said her taste and smell had “almost returned to normal” after the operation.

 

 

https://www.theguardian.com/society/2025/mar/07/long-covid-patients-regain-sense-smell-taste-functional-septorhinoplasty-surgery

Thank you for sharing this, I never tested + for Covid but I think it had it in ‘20 still and since those days my sense of smell is not as strong as it once was so I figured it had something to do with it but wasn’t sure if they’d ever figure it out. 

[Ladle Ghoulash 52,872]

2 hours ago, NotoriousEden said:

Long Covid is real?

…absolutely wild that you would even consider laughing about something like that tbh

[Levine 23,958]

I lost it for almost a month and it was sooooo bad and sad. Even drinking water wasn't satisfying, I don't know how to explain. And with the food it's not like you had 0 taste, but it all taste bad, very bitter.

I can't image how these people feel having lost this sense for years. 

[AsleepOnTheCeiling 6,965]

48 minutes ago, PartySick said:

Yes! 

Ever since I caught covid years ago my actual lung capacity has been noticably worse and I got off light, some people have worse covid symptoms that just will not go away

I've had COVID ~4 times now and this most recent one finally got me long term. I've had congestion for about 2 months now. It's not nearly as bad as it was when I was actually sick, but it's enough to make me cough a few times a day. 

[Oriane 22,768]

Interesting, does this only work specifically for people who lost their sense of smell due to Covid? If so, I'm curious to know what's different.

2 hours ago, NotoriousEden said:

Long Covid is real?

Did you think long Covid was just some joke on social media...?

[HelloHangoverz 17,452]

10 hours ago, Ladle Ghoulash said:

…absolutely wild that you would even consider laughing about something like that tbh

NUUUUUUUURSE

[NotoriousEden 621]

16 hours ago, Oriane said:

Interesting, does this only work specifically for people who lost their sense of smell due to Covid? If so, I'm curious to know what's different.

Did you think long Covid was just some joke on social media...?

well yes. I’m shook that it’s a real thing 

[PartySick 172,537]

Just now, NotoriousEden said:

well yes. I’m shook that it’s a real thing 

Oh sis  

It's usually from damage done to the lungs or respiratory tract as a whole and some people experience the brain issues (brain fog, trouble focusing, depression, etc) long after the virus has cleared their system.

Covid is a bad mf'er  

[NotoriousEden 621]

15 minutes ago, PartySick said:

Oh sis  

It's usually from damage done to the lungs or respiratory tract as a whole and some people experience the brain issues (brain fog, trouble focusing, depression, etc) long after the virus has cleared their system.

Covid is a bad mf'er  

Jeez that’s awful