IRCT20210311050671N1.

Study name	Effect of auricular acupuncture with the laser in post‐viral anosmia during the COVID‐19 pandemic
Methods	Two‐arm, single‐blind, single‐centre, parallel‐group RCT with 12 weeks duration of treatment and follow‐up
Participants	Participants with COVID‐19 and olfactory dysfunction for at least 1 month  Inclusion criteria: Definite diagnosis of COVID‐19 Olfactory disorder (anosmia) No improvement within one month Exclusion criteria: History of surgery or head trauma Chronic and severe inflammatory diseases Degenerative diseases Nasal allergies Abnormal anatomy of the nose. Estimated sample size: 90 participants
Interventions	Intervention group: Acupuncture will be performed in 2 sessions with an interval of 1 week. Each session will last for 20 minutes.  Control group: "Laser‐off acupuncture" will be used as a placebo Use of additional interventions in both group; Both groups will received betamethasone drops (no further information is provided)
Outcomes	Outcomes of interest in the review: Primary outcomes: Presence of normal sense of smell Described as "the percentage of people with a reduced sense of smell", according to psychophysical testing using the 24‐item Iranian olfactory test (no further details provided) Serious adverse effects Not assessed Change in sense of smell Not assessed Secondary outcomes: Prevalence of parosmia Not assessed Change in sense of taste Not assessed Disease‐related quality of life Not assessed Other adverse effects (including nosebleeds/bloody discharge) Not assessed Other outcomes reported by the study: None reported
Starting date	4 April 2021
Contact information	Alireza Mohebbi Email: mohebbi.ar@iums.ac.ir
Notes	Registered in Iran.  Estimated study completion date 6 July 2021.  It is unclear if participants will have had symptoms for < 4 weeks at baseline, therefore this study may not be suitable for inclusion in this review. Further details will be obtained when the trial is published.