Researchers find simple way to reduce severe effects of COVID-19

Flushing a mucus-lined nasal cavity with a weak saline solution twice a day shortly after testing positive for COVID-19 can significantly reduce hospitalizations and even deaths, report researchers from the Medical College of Georgia at Augusta University.

The findings are published in the Ear, Nose & Throat Journal.

The scientists said the method, which can be used at home by mixing half a teaspoon each of salt and baking soda in a cup of boiled or distilled water and then placing it in a sinus flush bottle, is a safe, effective and inexpensive way to reduce the risk of severe illness and death from coronavirus infection that could be vital to public health.

"We found an 8.5-fold reduction in hospitalizations and no deaths compared to a control group," the study authors noted. 

In particular, the researchers found that less than 1.3 percent of the 79 study participants age 55 or older who were admitted within 24 hours of a positive test for COVID-19 between Sept. 24 and Dec. 21, 2020, had a hospitalization. None died.

Among the participants who were treated and monitored for 28 days, one participant was hospitalized and another went to the emergency department but was not hospitalized.

By comparison, 9.47% of patients were hospitalized and 1.5% died in a group with similar demographics reported by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention during the same time period, which began about nine months after SARS-CoV-2 first appeared in the United States.

The researchers were also interested in the effect on the severity of symptoms, such as chills, loss of taste and smell. Twenty-three of the 29 participants who consistently irrigated their noses twice a day had no symptoms after two weeks, compared with 14 of 33 participants who were less diligent.