TY - JOUR AU - Passali, Giulio Cesare; Passali, Desiderio; Ciprandi, Giorgio TI - Postinfectious Olfactory Complaints: A Follow-up Study SN - 1809-9777 SN - 1809-4864 PY - 2022 JO - Int Arch Otorhinolaryngol JF - International Archives of Otorhinolaryngology LA - EN VL - 26 IS - 04 SP - e657 EP - e660 DA - 2022/03/02 KW - olfactory dysfunction KW - acute upper respiratory infection KW - olfactometry AB - Introduction Acute upper respiratory infection (AURI) is the most common cause of postinfectious olfactory dysfunction (PIOD).Objective We investigated the prevalence of PIOD in a large group of patients reporting persistent smell impairment perception after the AURI resolution.Methods Olfactometry was performed within 1 month after the common cold resolution and after 1 year in 467 (299 males, mean age 41.7 years) outpatients. The Sniffin' Sticks olfactory test (Burghart instruments, Wedel, Germany) was used.Results Anosmia was documented in 28 (6%) patients, hyposmia in 33 (7%), and cacosmia in 55 (11.7%). After 1 year, PIOD improved in 82 (79.6%) patients re-tested.Conclusion The current study demonstrated that persistent olfactory dysfunction is a relevant symptom in patients with AURI, even though many patients had normal olfactometry. Thus, smell impairment deserves careful attention and requires objective documentation. PB - Thieme Revinter Publicações Ltda. DO - 10.1055/s-0042-1742761 UR - http://www.thieme-connect.com/products/ejournals/abstract/10.1055/s-0042-1742761 ER -