In daily life, we often think that the smell is caused by rhinitis or cold, so we often ignore it. But did you know that a decreased sense of smell can also be a red flag for other diseases. Therefore, we should pay attention to the change of the sense of smell.
Case
74-year-old Grandma Zhao is usually in good health, but when her granddaughter who went out to study came back, she found that Grandma Zhao's sense of smell was out of order, and the family said that it was not a big deal, and the granddaughter insisted on taking Grandma Zhao to the hospital for examination, and it was found that the sense of smell was caused by nasal polyps and sinusitis. The doctor praised Grandma Zhao's granddaughter for her careful observation, so that Grandma Zhao's illness was treated in time.
Let's take a look at the things about the sense of smell.
How the sense of smell is generated
When the olfactory cells here are stimulated by the volatile substances, they will produce nerve impulses and pass along the olfactory nerve to the olfactory center of the brain, and then produce the sense of smell. Therefore, if the smell does not reach the olfactory area, or the olfactory mucosa is damaged, or the olfactory nerve is damaged, or even the olfactory center of the brain has problems, it will cause olfactory disorders.
Causes of olfactory disorders
●Nasal obstruction: The most common are inflammatory diseases and metaplasia of the olfactory mucosa epithelium, such as acute rhinitis (cold), chronic rhinitis, sinusitis, nasal polyps, and intranasal tumors, which obstruct the nasal cavity so that air cannot reach the olfactory mucosa, causing a decreased sense of smell.
●Olfactory nerve injury: Viral infections and allergic reactions (eg, olfactory neuritis, chemical gas injury) may cause olfactory nerve injury and decreased sense of smell. In addition, head injuries, nasal surgeries, or tumors can cause damage to the olfactory nerve, resulting in decreased sense of smell.
●Intracranial disorders, such as basilar skull fractures and skull base tumors, compress the olfactory center, resulting in decreased sense of smell.
●Certain central nervous system disorders, such as Alzheimer's disease and central nervous system disorders, can cause bilateral hyposmia due to olfactory nerve atrophy, which is often seen on imaging studies.
●Novel coronavirus pneumonia: It has been reported that the loss of smell in patients with novel coronavirus pneumonia may be due to inflammation of the nasal mucosa caused by the novel coronavirus, which disrupts olfactory function.
How to diagnose olfactory disorders
If you notice that you are not as sensitive to smells as before, such as family members can smell the smell of vegetables that have been moldy for a long time, but you don't smell them, you should be vigilant. In addition to these occasional detections, we can also conduct self-tests from time to time.
Easy way: Close your eyes, press one nostril and ask a family member or friend to take a substance with a special smell (e.g., mothballs, perfume, vinegar, etc.) to tell you what it is. If you notice that your sense of smell has decreased, you should see a doctor promptly. Your doctor will determine the cause of your loss of smell based on your clinical presentation, accompanying symptoms, results of a rhinoscopy, and results from computed tomography (CT) or magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of your nose and brain.
Treatments for olfactory disorders
At present, there is no specific drug for the treatment of olfactory disorders in clinical practice, and the treatment is mainly aimed at the cause.
If the sense of smell is caused by an inflammatory disorder of the nasal cavity or sinuses, nasal hormones, oral antihistamines, and neurotrophic drugs can be treated symptomatically, and the sense of smell will improve or restore when the nasal cavity is well ventilated. If sinusitis is severe, nasal polyps, or nasal tumors, surgical excision should be done.
If the olfactory disorder is caused by a psychiatric factor, it is necessary to see an otolaryngology and psychiatrist for diagnosis and treatment.
For olfactory disorders caused by the rupture of the olfactory center or olfactory filament caused by traumatic brain injury, drugs that nurture the nerve, such as gangliosides, murine nerve growth factor, methylcobalamin, etc., can be given, but recovery is more difficult.
Prevention of nasal diseases
To prevent olfactory disorders, nasal health care and prevention of nasal diseases are important. In daily life, in addition to regular work and rest, appropriate exercise to enhance physical fitness, and prevent colds, we can also often carry out relevant acupressure massage.
●Rubbing the Yingxiang acupoint: Massage the Yingxiang acupoint (in the nasolabial fold depression on the side of the alar side) back and forth with the middle finger or index finger of both hands to help local blood circulation and prevent nasal diseases.
●Rub the Yintang acupoint: Press the index finger of both hands (the midpoint of the two eyebrows), and then push it out to the temple along the lower direction of the eyebrow bone, which has the effect of clearing the nose and brightening the purpose.
●Rubbing the eye acupoint: Rotating the index finger of both hands and rubbing the eye acupoint (the depression slightly above the inner corner of the eye) can relieve nasal congestion and runny nose.
Content Sources:
People's Medical Publishing House published ""Top Priority": Famous Ear, Nose and Throat Doctors Say That We Should Prevent and Treat It Like This"
Editor-in-Chief of the book:
Li Yunying, chief physician of Guangdong Provincial Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine
Looking forward to seeing you
share
Looking