It's unlikely to lose the sense of smell without also perceiving a loss or change in taste. Can you just lose your sense of taste or smell? Most of the time taste also is affected since smell and taste work together to create flavor. Smell dysfunction likely affects 50%–75% of people in the U.S.
How common is it to lose your sense of smell and taste? It is also common in other viral upper respiratory illness, such as the common cold, but rarely is it the only or first symptom in those cases. Therefore, you should self-isolate and get tested for COVID-19 when you can. Smell dysfunction is common and often the first symptom of a COVID-19 infection. Learn more in this Q&A: What should you do if you've lost your sense of smell and taste? However, many viruses can cause smell dysfunction, such as the common cold. The COVID-19 pandemic has brought anosmia into the spotlight. The loss of smell, or anosmia, can be devastating and has even been associated with depression. Smell is linked to emotion and memory, alerts us to danger and possibly most importantly works with the sense of taste to give us flavor. Smell is an often underrated sense, and many don't realize how truly important it is until it doesn't work normally.
