MSN: One symptom that predicts how bad your coronavirus case will be

UC researcher says the nose offers a clue by the third day of infection

Ahmad Sedaghat, MD, PhD, found in a study of 103 Swiss patients diagnosed with COVID-19, patients were most likely to show loss of a sense of smell by the third day of infection with the novel virus. Most patients also experienced a loss of the sense of taste.

Sedaghat, an associate professor in the UC College of Medicine’s Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery and an UC Health physician specializing in diseases of the nose and sinuses, said at least 61 percent of patients reported reduced or loss sense of smell. The mean onset for reduction or loss in the sense of smell was 3.4 days.

The findings were picked up by various national and international media outlets including The Economic Times, MSN, The Times of India, and Spectrum News (starts at 9:17).

Read more about the research online.

Related Stories

2

UC launches new Center for Public Health

April 6, 2026

The University of Cincinnati College of Medicine recently announced Suzanne Judd, PhD, as the inaugural director of its new Center for Public Health. The hire follows a national search launched in August 2025, as the Cincinnati Business Courier reported.

3

High Court offers protections for therapy speech

April 5, 2026

Jennifer Bard, a professor in the Donald P. Klekamp College of Law and the UC Department of Internal Medicine, spoke with journalists about the US Supreme Court ruling granting first amendment protections for speech offered during therapy sessions.