Hydrating the upper airways eases COVID-19 symptoms

Upper airway hydration via salt mist droplets reduces self-reported symptoms of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), a recent study has found.

“Divalent cation hypertonic salt delivery to the nose, larynx, and trachea appears to be promising as a simple, safe, non-drug, daily hygiene strategy for upper airway hydration and facilitating natural clearance of inhaled contaminants, including SARS-CoV-2,” the researchers said.

“A non-pathogen specific hygienic approach for respiratory disease could be an inexpensive and easily-adopted approach to supporting global respiratory health in the light of the ongoing pandemic and the worsening of air quality associated with climate change,” they added.

A total of 464 volunteers from across three sites in the US, India, and Germany participated in the study. The generation of respiratory droplets increased by around four orders of magnitude in airways that showed characteristics of dehydration associated with advanced age, strenuous exercise, and COVID-19 infection.

A random-control analysis of 40 COVID-19 patients showed that hydration through calcium-rich hypertonic salt aerosols, delivered three times a day, led to a 51-percent decrease in droplet generation, and a 48.08-percent increase in oxygen saturation over 3 days. No such effect was reported in patients who received the nasal saline control.

Of note, participants in the active hydration group also reported that they felt a significant decline in symptoms, while controls gave no such feedback.