Histopathologic Findings of Olfactory Mucosa in COVID-19 Patients

Olfactory manifestations are common findings during the course of COVID-19, while exact physiopathology is not known

We review histological changes of the nasal olfactory mucosa in COVID-19 non-survivors who died in the ICU.

Sampling was done within 1 hour of death under direct vision. Specimens were taken medial to the middle turbinate in the cribriform area, embedded in paraffin blocks,and stained by haematoxylin and eosin.

The most frequent histologic finding was the infiltration of inflammatory cells mostly comprised of lymphocytes. Inflammatory infiltration of mucosa was seen in all 11 patients with ulceration in 9 cases and neuritis in 3 cases.

Inflammatory infiltration of olfactorymucosa may be associated with smell manifestations. Further histological studies will clarify the role of the nasal mucosa in the physiopathology of COVID-19 especially olfactory involvement.