Smell Loss After Upper Respiratory Infection

Losing the sense of smell is not uncommon with upper respiratory infections (URI), typically with a viral common cold or flu. According to some studies, smell loss or decrease may occur between 18-45% of  patients who suffer from a URI. It is estimated that about 1/3 of such patients will fully recover their sense of smell with 2-3 years, most within the first year. Unfortunately, that leaves 2/3 of these patients who suffer from some degree of smell dysfunction. The key determining …

1/11/2018 0

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Why Does Airplane Food Taste So Bad?

Image by Wikipedia People universally complain about how bad airplane food is... However, the reason may surprise you in that it's not the airline's fault, but your body's. Based on research performed in 2010 at the Fraunhofer Institute in Germany where they have a replica airplane cabin and can simulate different altitudes, cabin pressure, cabin external wall temperature, relative humidity, noise level, vibration, light, air circulation, etc... food scientists discovered that…

5/15/2017 0

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Lawsuit Over Neck Cancer Misdiagnosed by Smell

In December 2012, a physician assistant (PA) excised a 3 cm right neck mass from a patient. In perhaps one of the more bizarre steps taken in this case, the physician assistant than smelled the excised mass, declared it non-cancerous, and threw it out in the garbage. Unfortunately, it was actually cancer which was correctly diagnosed 6 months later after the mass which had regrown was excised and sent to pathology by a doctor. The patient ultimately underwent a radical neck dissection and …

8/01/2014 0

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Man Files $15 million Lawsuit Against NYC Citi Bike Claiming Smell Loss From Bike Crash

Image by Pharos of Wikipedia In 2013, a man rented a bicycle from New York City's Citi Bike program. Apparently while riding this rental bike, the front wheel struck a wheelstop installed near a bicycle docking station which the man did not notice, flipping him resulting in head trauma. This head trauma resulted in permanent smell and taste loss. [ link ] The wheelstop is meant to prevent cars from from backing into bike stations, but the lawsuit alleges "no cones or colored wa…

3/30/2014 0

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When Your Child Has a Draining Ear

Guest Blog Post by Dr. Julie Wei, MD, FAAP One of the most common and simple procedures that Otolaryngologists (ear, nose, and throat specialists) perform is that of putting “tubes” in children’s ears. General and pediatric otolaryngologists alike perform thousands of these simple and quick procedures every year, often several times in a single hour! Most children who need and get “tubes” in their ears are toddlers and those in preschool age. What continues to surprise me is how often pare…

4/11/2013 16

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Why Do Humans Have Weak Sense of Smell

Compared to nearly all other animals, humans have the weakest sense of smell. You would think that humans and our closest evolutionary cousins (chimpanzees, apes, etc) would have similar sense of smell, but humans still have a much weaker olfactory sense. Why might that be? Well, research from Karolinska Institutet have discovered that humans are the ONLY mammals whereby no new neurons are formed in the olfactory bulb after birth. Or if there is any, it is VERY little. In all other …

5/27/2012 0

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"Mouthwatering" Foods May Be a Misnomer?

In the spirit of Thanskgiving where thoughts of food predominate,  British researchers have determined that humans are NOT able to produce more saliva by merely thinking of foods whether hungry or not. This includes looking at pictures of sumptuous foods. What researchers did determine is that SMELLING foods increased salivary production significantly. Tasting and chewing was even more influential in salivary production. So at least for humans, unless the food is smelled, tasted, or ch…

11/29/2011 0

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Diagnosing Smell and Taste Disorders

This article is reprinted with kind permission from Dr. Robert Henkin of the Smell and Taste Clinic located in Washington DC. Answers to the Four Questions Required to Determine Cause of Smell and Taste Disorders:  Question 1. DETECTION THRESHOLD – Can you detect the least concentrated stimulus from among three presented stimuli – two of which are either water (tastants) or neutral (odorants) and one of which is different? This answer tells us of the presence and character of function…

2/22/2011 1

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Why Eating Asparagus Causes a Smelly Urine... You Know Who You Are!

About 50% of the population experiences a very foul smelling urine after eating asparagus. For those in the know, the odor is compared to rotting cabbage, ammonia, rotten eggs, etc. In fact, the smell is so foul, even the culprit person who is urinating can barely tolerate it himself! For awhile there was an argument in the scientific community whether this phenomenon was due to a smell disorder or a urine problem... Hypothesis #1: EVERYBODY's urine smells... it's just that hal…

6/06/2010 0

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NYT: Story on Phantosmia (Phantom Smells)

In the Aug 10, 2009 issue of the New York Times, a story entitled " A Pungent Life: The Smells in My Head ," describes the life of an individual who suffers from phantosmia, a frustrating disorder where a person smells disagreeable odors that is not actually present. Such odors range from raw sewage/garbage to burning. Though actual physical pathology may cause this symptom including brain tumors, sinus infection , nasal polyps , etc. Too often, everything comes back normal. Thou…

8/11/2009 0

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