AJNR Am J Neuroradiol . Anosmia in COVID-19 Associated With Injury to the Olfactory Bulbs Evident on MRI

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AJNR Am J Neuroradiol


. 2020 Jun 25.
doi: 10.3174/ajnr.A6675. Online ahead of print.
Anosmia in COVID-19 Associated With Injury to the Olfactory Bulbs Evident on MRI


M F V V Arag?o ^{1 2} , M C Leal ^{3 4} , O Q Cartaxo Filho ⁴ , T M Fonseca ⁴ , M M Valen?a ³



Affiliations

• PMID: 32586960
• DOI: 10.3174/ajnr.A6675

Abstract

Patients with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) may have symptoms of anosmia or partial loss of the sense of smell, often accompanied by changes in taste. We report 5 cases (3 with anosmia) of adult patients with COVID-19 in whom injury to the olfactory bulbs was interpreted as microbleeding or abnormal enhancement on MR imaging. The patients had persistent headache (n = 4) or motor deficits (n = 1). This olfactory bulb injury may be the mechanism by which the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome coronavirus 2 causes olfactory dysfunction.