Coronavirus cases have surged in recent weeks following the discovery of a new variant which is thought to be 70 percent more transmissible. Swathes of the country have been put under harsh restrictions over the Christmas period, and now the emergence of a strange new symptom has people talking about the wide-ranging effects of this terrible disease.
More than 30,000 new cases were reported across the UK on Sunday, with another 316 deaths.
However, the true numbers are likely to be higher as some parts of the UK are not reporting data over Christmas.
Doctors in Scotland and Wales have warned the NHS is close to being overrun by the number of cases in hospitals currently, with one NHS Trust in Wales forced to put a call out on social media to help from local medical students.
Some ambulance crews in London had to wait six hours before they could hand over patients due to a shortage of beds.
Now, a new symptom of coronavirus has become a discussion point as many report a strange new symptom.
Nirmal Kumar, an ear, nose and throat surgeon and professor at Edge Hill University Medical School, was among the first people to identify it in coronavirus sufferers.
He said: “This morning I saw two patients with parosmia.
“One said they could smell fish in place of any other scent, and the other can smell burning when there is no smoke around.”
“Both are healthcare workers, and we think there is increased incidence in young people and also in healthcare workers because of exposure to the virus in hospitals.
“For some people, it is really upsetting them.”