A scientific analysis of complaints from patients WHO have recovered from COVID-19 with hearing, olfactory, voice, and vestibular dysfunction of varying severity

OBJECTIVE. The objective of the study is to investigate the complaints of individuals who have recovered from COVID-19, taking into account the severity of sensory system disorders, including hearing, olfactory, voice, and vestibular dysfunction. MATERIALS AND METHODS. A total of 120 patients who had recovered from COVID-19 and presented with sensory disorders were evaluated based on questionnaire data, medical history, and clinical complaints. All participants were divided into two groups according to the clinical course of the disease and the severity of sensory disorders: Group 1 included 74 patients with mild to moderate sensory disorders, whereas Group 2 comprised 46 patients who had experienced a more severe course of COVID-19 and developed persistent sensory disorders. RESULTS. The study demonstrated that patients in Group 2 reported complaints related to hearing, olfactory, voice, and vestibular dysfunction, as well as central nervous system manifestations, significantly more frequently than those in Group 1. Moreover, they exhibited more severe clinical manifestations, including reduced speech discrimination, tinnitus, poor tolerance to loud sounds, sudden sensorineural hearing loss caused by labyrinthine infarction, involvement of the central auditory pathways, prolonged anosmia associated with central olfactory pathway impairment, persistent dystonia, vocal fold paresis, spasmodic dysphonia, pronounced vestibular dysfunction, and neurological manifestations. Patients in Group 2 were also more likely to experience progression of pre-existing sensorineural hearing loss following COVID-19, and their hearing, voice, olfactory, and vestibular symptoms persisted for longer periods. Furthermore, they more frequently reported headaches, memory and attention impairment, sleep disturbances, and increased fatigue, indicating more pronounced central nervous system involvement in patients with severe sensory disorders. CONCLUSIONS. COVID-19 can cause severe and progressive sensory disorders of hearing, olfaction, taste, voice, and vestibular function, as well as neurological manifestations. Assessment of patients' complaints and the duration of symptoms during and after COVID-19 is important for the timely diagnosis, management and prevention of post-COVID sensory disorders.