gms | German Medical Science

77th Annual Meeting of the German Society of Oto-Rhino-Laryngology, Head and Neck Surgery

German Society of Oto-Rhino-Laryngology, Head and Neck Surgery

24.05. - 28.05.2006, Mannheim

Article

Send article

Changes in olfactory function in patients with post-infectious and post-traumatic smell disorders before and after treatment with vitamin A: a double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical trial

Meeting Abstract

Search Medline for

  • corresponding author presenting/speaker Katja Lill - Department of Otorhinolaryngology, University of Dresden Medical School, Dresden, Germany
  • Jens Reden - Department of Otorhinolaryngology, University of Dresden Medical School, Dresden, Germany
  • Thomas Hummel - Department of Otorhinolaryngology, University of Dresden Medical School, Dresden, Germany

German Society of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery. 77th Annual Meeting of the German Society of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery. Mannheim, 24.-28.05.2006. Düsseldorf, Köln: German Medical Science; 2006. Doc06hno058

The electronic version of this article is the complete one and can be found online at: http://www.egms.de/en/meetings/hno2006/06hno058.shtml

Published: September 7, 2006

© 2006 Lill et al.
This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0/deed.en). You are free: to Share – to copy, distribute and transmit the work, provided the original author and source are credited.

Outline

Text

Introduction: The presented data is based on a double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled clinical trial for investigation on effectiveness of vitamin A in post-infectious and post-traumatic smell disorders. The effect is probably based on the stimulation of regeneration and repair of the peripheral olfactory system.

Material and methods: A total of 60 patients (age: 20-70 years, mean age: 52 years) participated 26 of whom received placebo (7 male, 19 female) and another 26 verum (6 male, 20 female). A standardized history was obtained in each patient. Olfactory function was measured by means of the “Sniffin’Sticks“ test kit, a validated technique to investigate odor tresholds, odor discrimination, and odor identification. Vitamin A was prescribed at a dose of 10.000 I.U./d for 3 months. Follow-up testing was performed on average 5 months after the first investigation.

Results: Forty-four percent of all patients reported subjective recovery of their sense of smell; 27% of the participants exhibited significant improvement in measured olfactory function (improvement in TDI-score ≥ 6). However, there was no significant difference between the outcome of patients receiving verum or placebo.

Conclusion: The application of vitamin A at a dose of 10.000 I.U./d for 3 months does not appear to be useful in the therapy of olfactory loss.