Long-term Follow-up of Surgically Treated Phantosmia

Abstract

Surgical excision of olfactory epithelium is an effective and safe method to relieve phantosmia while potentially preserving olfactory ability. The abnormal histological features of the excised olfactory tissue suggest at least some pathological condition in the peripheral olfactory system. This nasal surgery requires intensive olfactory evaluation and follow-up. It is also extremely difficult with significant risks, and therefore should be limited to specialized centers.

Evaluating the clinical usefulness of structured questions in parosmia assessment

“…The only interesting finding was that patients with parosmia reported less changes of eating behavior than patients with phantosmia. This corroborates case reports of phantosmia leading to dramatic eating avoidance and weight lost, requiring surgery in order to stop the phantosmia 4. However, this has also been reported in patients with parosmia20 and is probably not specific to phantosmia.…”

Management of long‐lasting phantosmia: a systematic review

“…Notably, in cases of peripheral phantosmia, medical therapy or observation may prove ineffective, and surgical intervention is an option in those who fail multiple trials of medication . As part of the research paradigm in the past, resection of the olfactory bulb through an open craniotomy approach was sometimes used to treat phantosmia and, more recently, endoscopic nasal approaches to the olfactory mucosa have been described . Morrissey et al's study, included in our systematic review, supports the notion that peripheral phantosmia is unlikely to respond to medical therapy, and a similar study showed that resection of the olfactory bulb was effective for a patient failing a trial of haloperidol .…”

What is the long term findings of olfactory and taste loss due to COVID-19?

“…[ 29 – 32 ] Moreover, it was reported that parosmia was associated with disordered regrowthof neurons and a predominanceof immature cells. [ 33 ] In the present study 5 (6.5%) patients complaint about parosmia, 3 (3.9%) patients complaint about cacosmia still after 12 months follow-up. These symptoms seem to be a significant public health issue as pandemic progresses and time passes.…”