[Smell impairment in COVID-19 patients: mechanisms and clinical significance]

Numerous studies have shown that loss of smell is a serious symptom that requires careful differential diagnosis. There is convincing evidence that a violation of the sense of smell is not so much a sign of the pathology of the nasal cavity and paranasal sinuses, but it can be a manifestation of neurodegenerative diseases. Some patients with the identified SARS-CoV-2 virus have neurological symptoms. Most of them are not specific - headache, dizziness, fatigue, myalgia. A small percentage of patients with COVID-19 infection have convulsions, impaired consciousness, and the presence of 2019-NCoV RNA was found in the cerebrospinal fluid. Data on the development of new symptoms of the disease, in the form of anosmia and dysgeusia, are presented.