The influence of a child's age on the evaluation of smells and their hedonistic assessment.

Olfactory function in children is most commonly evaluated using the odour identification test despite the fact that it is difficult to properly name odorants for young children. The goal of this study was to evaluate the pleasantness rating of odorants by children. The participants were 182 healthy children: the first group included 63 girls and 59 boys (aged 6-7) and the second included 31 girls and 29 boys (aged 11-12). We assessed olfaction using (1) standard method of odorant identification using a U-Sniff test and (2) classifying the hedonic tone of the odorants into 5 categories. The identification test's median differed in younger and older groups of children; the median was 8 and 10 respectively (p < 0.01). The unpleasant hedonic tones were butter, fish and onion. The pleasant hedonic tones were apple, orange and peach. The younger usually categorised hedonic tones as pleasant, compared with the older children, who categorised the odorant's hedonic tones more often as neutral (p < 0.01).Conclusion: This study demonstrated that older children are able to identify odours better than younger ones. The categorisation of hedonic tones differed depending on the subject's age. The younger children tended to categorise odorants as being pleasant and older children as neutral. What is Known: • The test of odour identification is the most popular because it is reliable, practical, rapid and commercially available. • The ability to identify odours improves with age in children. What is New: • The categorisation of hedonic tones differs depending on age. The older children categorise odorants as being neutral significantly more often than younger children do.

Ethyl alcohol threshold test: a fast, reliable and affordable olfactory Assessment tool for COVID-19 patients.

OBJECTIVE: COVID-19 patients may present mild symptoms. The identification of paucisymptomatic patients is paramount in order to interrupt the transmission chain of the virus. Olfactory loss could be one of those early symptoms which might help in the diagnosis of COVID-19 patients. In this study, we aim to develop and validate a fast, inexpensive, reliable and easy-to-perform olfactory test for the screening of suspected COVID-19 patients. STUDY DESIGN: Phase I was a case-control study and Phase II a transversal descriptive study. SUBJECTS AND METHODS: Olfaction was assessed with the ethyl alcohol threshold test and symptoms with visual analogue scales. The study was designed in two phases: In Phase I, we compared confirmed COVID-19 patients and healthy controls. In Phase II, patients with suspected COVID-19 infection referred for testing were studied. RESULTS: 275 participants were included in Phase I, 135 in Phase II. The ROC curve showed an AUC of 0.749 in Phase I, 0.737 in Phase II. The cutoff value which offered the highest amount of correctly classified patients was ≥ 2 (10% alcohol) for all age intervals. The odds ratio was 8.19 in Phase I, 6.56 in Phase II with a 75% sensitivity. When cases report normal sense of smell (VAS < 4), it misdiagnoses 57.89% of patients detected by the alcohol threshold test. CONCLUSION: The olfactory loss assessed with the alcohol threshold test has shown high sensitivity and odds ratio in both patients with confirmed COVID-19 illness and participants with suspected SARS-CoV-2 infection.

Alcohol Sniff Test (AST): An Important Tool for Screening Post-Viral Olfactory Loss in Acute Flu-Like Dysfunction.

Olfactory disorders have a significant impact on patients' quality of life but are often underestimated in clinical practice. Upper respiratory tract infections (URTIs) are a common cause of olfactory loss. While most cases of olfactory loss due to URTIs are conductive and reversible, post-viral olfactory dysfunction (PVOD) persists despite symptom improvement. PVOD is attributed to damage to the olfactory epithelium and nerves or central olfactory pathway lesions. The Alcohol Sniff Test (AST) has been proposed as a tool to assess olfactory function in the acute phase and aid in differentiating PVOD from conductive disorders. This study aims to evaluate the effectiveness of the AST as a predictor of post-viral olfactory loss in patients with flu-like syndrome. An observational cross-sectional study was conducted among employees with flu-like syndrome at a tertiary hospital. Three groups were formed: flu-like syndrome with conductive disorder without COVID-19 (PVOD-), flu-like syndrome with neurosensory and/or central disorder due to COVID-19 (PVOD +), and an asymptomatic control group. The Alcohol Sniff Test was performed to assess olfactory function. Statistical analysis was conducted to evaluate the AST's performance. For a cut off of 10 cm, 88.57% of PVOD + patients and 60.53% of PVOD - patients showed AST alteration, respectively (p = 0.013, OR = 5.05, 95% CI [1.48-17.25]). There was a statistically significant difference in the mean distance between the PVOD + group (4.35 ± 4.1 cm) and the control group (20 ± 4.33 cm) (p < 0.05). This relationship was also observed between the PVOD + and PVOD- groups (9 cm ± 7.5) (p < 0.05) and between the PVOD- and control groups (p < 0.05). For a cut off of 10 cm, the AST showed a sensitivity of 88% and specificity of 41%, resulting in an Odds Ratio of 9.7 (95% CI 3.3-28.1) (p < 0.001) and a Positive Predictive Value of 69.4% for PVOD. PVOD, including cases associated with COVID-19, is a prevalent cause of olfactory loss. The Alcohol Sniff Test demonstrated promising results in identifying PVOD in patients with flu-like syndrome. The test's simplicity and accessibility make it a valuable tool for early screening and identifying individuals who may benefit from prompt treatment. The Alcohol Sniff Test (AST) shows potential as an effective tool for screening post-viral olfactory loss in patients with flu-like syndrome. It can aid in early identification of PVOD cases and facilitate timely interventions to reduce the likelihood of persistent hyposmia.

Fluoroscopic sniff test as a diagnostic tool for phrenic nerve injury in patients with traumatic brachial plexus injury.

OBJECTIVE: Traumatic brachial plexus injury (BPI) is a high-morbidity condition with an escalating incidence. One of the treatment options is neurotization using the ipsilateral phrenic nerve. Therefore, diagnosis of nerve dysfunction is a crucial step in preoperative planning. This study aimed to assess the accuracy and reliability of the fluoroscopic sniff test for preoperative diagnosis of phrenic nerve injury in patients with traumatic BPI. METHODS: The study was conducted from June 2019 to August 2023 at a tertiary care hospital. A preoperative fluoroscopic sniff test was performed. During brachial plexus surgery, direct phrenic nerve stimulation was conducted as a gold standard of phrenic nerve function. Two nonoperating orthopedic surgeons interpreted the accuracy and reliability of the test. RESULTS: Seventy-four patients with traumatic BPI (66 males and 8 females) with a median age of 26 years were enrolled. Sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value, negative predictive value, and accuracy of the fluoroscopic sniff test were 90.9% (95% CI 75.7%-98.1%), 100% (95% CI 91.4%-100%), 100% (95% CI 88.4%-100%), 93.2% (95% CI 82.3%-97.6%), and 95.9% (95% CI 88.6%-99.2%), respectively. Interobserver reliability showed excellent agreement (κ = 1, p < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: The fluoroscopic sniff test was proven to be an accurate, reliable, and simple tool to evaluate phrenic nerve function in patients with traumatic BPI. Preoperative testing should be performed to reduce operative time to identify the phrenic nerve as a donor for nerve transfer surgery in cases in which no function is detected from the fluoroscopic sniff test.

Olfactory disorders in childhood: A comparative study of olfaction in children with adenoid hyperplasia versus a control group and the postoperative effects of adenoidectomy with respect to olfactory ability.

PURPOSE: Hyposmia in childhood is poorly characterized. The "U-Sniff Test", validated for children with anosmia, can be used to objectify olfactory impairment but has not been used to distinguish between hyposmia and normosmia. Therefore, we investigated children with enlarged adenoids with respect to hyposmia, its correlation with adenoid size, and the sensitivity of questionnaires to predict olfactory impairment. METHODS: In a prospective comparison, olfaction was assessed by "U-Sniff Test" (score 0-12; <8 hyposmia) in 41 children (5-18 years) with adenoid hyperplasia and compared with 196 children without any respiratory affection (control) after exclusion of previous SARS-Cov2-infection from December 2020 to December 2021. ENT-related complaints were collected using a self-designed questionnaire. We were able to include 13 children in a follow-up examination to compare preoperative performance in the "U-Sniff Test" with postoperative outcome after adenoidectomy. STATISTICS: chi-square-test (p < 0.05), odds-ratio, Spearman's rho, ROC-, cluster analysis. RESULTS: Severe hyposmia was present in 36.6% of children with adenoid-hyperplasia compared to 3.1% of the control-group. Adenoid-children scored significantly more often between 8 and 10 points (58.5%) than the control (31.6%; p < 0.01). Adenoid size and olfactory performance correlate significantly (r: 0.83; CI -0.89 … -0.72). Hyposmia in the adenoid group is characterized predominately by loss of the odors banana, butter and rose. None of children with hyposmia or parents reported impaired olfactory performance. Postoperatively, olfactory function improved significantly in 85% of cases (p 0.01, SD ± 1.71, Δ3.54points). CONCLUSION: Questionnaires are insufficient to detect hyposmia in this cohort. In contrast, the "U-Sniff Test" detects even reduced olfactory performance without reaching the cut-off value, which represents the majority of test results in the adenoid group. Therefore, we recommend the classification of moderate hyposmia (8-10 points) to be included for our study population.

Quantitative analysis of diaphragm motion during fluoroscopic sniff test to assist in diagnosis of hemidiaphragm paralysis.

The current imaging gold standard for detecting paradoxical diaphragm motion and diagnosing hemidiaphragm paralysis is to perform the fluoroscopic sniff test. The images are visually examined by an experienced radiologist, and if one hemidiaphragm ascends while the other descends, then it is described as paradoxical motion, which is highly suggestive of hemidiaphragm paralysis. However, diagnosis can be challenging because diaphragm motion during sniffing is fast, paradoxical motion can be subtle, and the analysis is based on a 2-dimensional projection of a 3-dimensional surface. This paper presents a case of chronic left hemidiaphragm elevation that was initially reported as mild paradoxical motion on fluoroscopy. After measuring the elevations of the diaphragms and modeling their temporal correlation using Gaussian process regression, the systematic trend of the hemidiaphragmatic motion along with its stochastic properties was determined. When analyzing the trajectories of the hemidiaphragms, no statistically significant paradoxical motion was detected. This could potentially change the prognosis if the patient was to consider diaphragm plication as treatment. The presented method provides a more objective analysis of hemidiaphragm motions and can potentially improve diagnostic accuracy.

Tubal function tests with optional myringotomy detect Eustachian tube closing failure in acquired pars flaccida retraction cholesteatoma.

OBJECTIVE: To re-evaluate the incidence of Eustachian tube closing failure in acquired middle ear cholesteatoma. METHOD: Thirty-one cases with acquired middle ear cholesteatoma who received surgery were enrolled. Presence of Eustachian tube closing failure was determined through two Eustachian tube function tests. First Step Tests: Test 1: Positive sniff test identified by retraction of the tympanic membrane upon sniffing was observed. Test 2: The pressure in the external auditory meatus was found to change synchronously with that of the nasopharynx during respiration or upon sniffing. Second step test: For cases with negative First Step Tests, myringotomy was performed and Test 2 was repeated. RESULTS: Test 1 was positive in six (19.4%) and Test 2 was initially positive in nine (29.0%) out of 31 cases. Twelve out of 31 cases (38.7%) were positive for either one of the tests. The remaining 19 cases with initial negative test results subsequently received myringotomy and were subjected to Test 2 again. Positive results were obtained in five (13.9%) additional cases, and a final total of 17 (54.8%) out of 31 cases were positive for Eustachian tube closing failure. CONCLUSION: Sniff test with optional myringotomy may be useful for preoperative diagnosis of Eustachian tube closing failure.

Right-sided diaphragmatic eventration: A rare entity.

Eventration of the diaphragm is an abnormal elevation of the dome of diaphragm. It is a condition in which all or part of the diaphragm is largely composed of fibrous tissue with only a few or no interspersed muscle fibers. It can be complete or partial. Complete eventration of the right diaphragm, as seen in this adult patient, is relatively rare.