2026 Poster Presentations
P131: DELAYS IN DIAGNOSIS OF PATIENTS WITH OLFACTORY GROOVE MENINGIOMAS DUE TO THE ASSOCIATION OF ANOSMIA WITH COVID-19
Celine D Hounjet, BSc, MD1; Patrick Toyota, BSc, MD2; Serge Makarenko, MD, FRCSC1; Peter Gooderham, MD, FRCSC1; Ryojo Akagami, MHSc, MD, FRCSC1; 1University of British Columbia; 2University of Saskatchewan
Introduction: Anosmia is a common presenting complaint of patients presenting with olfactory groove meningioma. However, with the emergence of COVID-19, anosmia became widely recognised as a viral symptom, which may have lead to this symptom being overlooked either by the patient themselves or by their physicians in the time since the 2020 global pandemic. This study aims to determine if there has been a difference in time from symptom onset and presentation to medical attention and/or diagnosis in those patients with olfactory groove meningioma who presented prior to the pandemic and those since.
Methods: A retrospective cohort study was performed at a single tertiary care center. Patients presenting with anosmia between 2015 and 2020 (pre-COVID cohort) were compared to those presenting between 2020 and 2025 (post-COVID cohort). Consideration was made to patients presenting in the years from 2020-2022 when social and healthcare policy may have caused additional delays in presentation. Demographic and clinical characteristics were collected from patient records. Time from first reported symptom to definitive diagnosis was calculated. Comparative analyses were planned to assess whether diagnostic timelines differed between cohorts.
Results: All patients referred to a tertiary surgical centre with an olfactory groove meningioma between 2015 and 2025 were reviewed. Preliminary review revealed observable differences in diagnostic intervals between pre- and post-COVID cohorts, suggesting there has been a difference in patient and physician perception of anosmia as a presenting symptom.
Conclusion: This study highlights the influence of the COVID-19 pandemic on diagnostic timelines in patients experiencing anosmia from an olfactory groove meningioma due to heightened association between anosmia and viral illness. Understanding shifts in both patient and physician practice are important for optimizing diagnostic pathways and ensuring timely identification of the underlying pathology.