Age and Gender but Not Common Chronic Illnesses Predict Odor Identification in Older African Americans

Normative Performance on the Brief Smell Identification Test (BSIT) in a Multi-Ethnic Bilingual Cohort: A Project FRONTIER Study1

“…This pattern of results is congruent with previous research suggesting that women tend to be less vulnerable to smell deficiencies across the lifespan (e.g., Economou, 2003; Doty et al, 1985; Hawkins et al, 2011). Although the exact cause of this gender gap is not fully understood, gender differences in circulating hormones have been proposed to account for females’ better sense of smell throughout the lifespan (e.g., Doty & Cameron, 2009; Doty, 1986).…”

“…The lack of association between these two factors offers support to the literature and suggests that the BSIT is relatively resistant to sociodemographic factors (Doty et al, 1996; Goudsmit et al, 2003; Hawkins & Pearlson, 2011). The fact that this sample comprised a greater range of educational attainment compared to previous examinations is a strength of this study, as it does not merely replicate but also expands on previous reports by demonstrating that the BSIT is a valuable assessment tool in both highly educated and non-educated individuals.…”

“…This is a significant potential limitation to the extant normative data given that the distractor choices were altered in 9 of the 12 BSIT items. To our knowledge, the possible impact of this alteration has not been examined, though Hawkins et al (2011) have provided some initial support for the use of the BSIT in a sample of African Americans. The authors demonstrate that BSIT performance is relatively resistant to sociodemographic influences including education in their cohort.…”

Association between diabetes mellitus and olfactory dysfunction: current perspectives and future directions

“…[16]. This finding is not consistent with other studies, which reported no such association [13,39]. A study in 30 people with diabetes and 30 control participants used 'absorbent perfumer's paper strips', a test using phenyl ethyl alcohol as an odorant and propylene glycol as a solvent.…”

“…Limited cross-sectional studies have explored associations between diabetes and olfaction [13][14][15][16][17][18][19][20]37] with inconsistent findings (Table 2 [ [11][12][13][14][15][16][17][18]35,[38][39][40]). The variability in outcomes may be attributed to several methodological inconsistencies, such as selection bias, small sample sizes, comorbidities, lack of objective measures, and differences in diagnostic tests for olfactory dysfunction, and diabetes and its complications.…”