Association of Chronic Rhinosinusitis with Risk of COVID-19 Infection
Author(s): Tunjai Namiq Faiq* and Ozdan Akram Ghareeb
Abstract
Chronic inflammatory diseases that affect the upper respiratory tract may be a risk factor for COVID19 infection. The current descriptive study is to investigate the existence of a relationship between chronic Rhinosinusitis disease (CRS) and infection with Covid 19. A descriptive study was conducted on 1125 participants who came to the specialized outpatient clinic of otolaryngology in Kirkuk) Iraq (, for the period between August and October of 2021. The results confirmed that the incidence of CRS among the participants was 11%, while the co-infection with COVID-19 was developed in 18 % of CRS patients. The incidence of hyposmia was 24 (18.0%) in CRS with COVID-19 patients versus 9 (6.0%) in non-Covid-19 patients. On the other hand, the proportion of nasal polyps was 41% among CRS patients infected with COVID-19. It was concluded that there is a risk relationship between chronic nasal inflammation and infection with Covid 19, so we recommend paying attention and conducting more accurate studies on this topic.