The oral cavity can reflect early indicators of various systemic conditions. Since the start of the COVID-19 outbreak, numerous publications have highlighted the virus’s direct impact on oral and facial tissues. In this investigation, oral symptoms and clinical findings of 22 hospitalized individuals with COVID-19 were assessed and contrasted with a comparable control sample. Disturbances in taste and smell were the most frequently reported complaints (65%), followed by xerostomia (45%) and bad breath (30%). Candidiasis represented the most frequent oral pathology (68%). Less frequent changes included ulcerative lesions (36%) and white mucosal patches (27.3%). A significant correlation was detected between fungal infections and patient age, with a p-value of 0.008. In this cohort, 80% of those diagnosed with candidal lesions were 60 years or older. No significant relationship was noted with chronic conditions such as hypertension or diabetes.
