Smell and taste disorders typically aren't serious, but they are frustrating to live with.
In smell and taste disorders, the senses are muted and/or distorted. These disorders reduce the patient’s ability to appreciate pleasant smells or enjoy eating and drinking.
- In smell and taste disorders, the senses are muted and/or distorted. These disorders reduce the patient’s ability to appreciate pleasant smells or enjoy eating and drinking.
- In smell and taste disorders, the senses are muted and/or distorted. These disorders reduce the patient’s ability to appreciate pleasant smells or enjoy eating and drinking.
Causes
The aging process is a common cause of smell and taste disorders. A person’s ability to smell and taste start to decline after the age of 50. Their olfactory nerves start to deteriorate, and the membranes within their nose become drier and thinner. Similarly, their taste buds become less sensitive, and they even start to lose some. Consequently, older people lose the ability to perceive salty and sweet tastes, but they can still taste sour or bitter foods.
Pregnant women often develop a condition called hyperosmia, in which their sense of smell becomes abnormally acute.
Smell and taste disorders can be temporary. Upper respiratory ailments like the cold or the flu can cause nasal congestion that reduces the patient’s ability to smell or taste.
Other causes of smell and taste disorders can include the following:
- Smoking
- Birth defect
- Polyps in the sinuses or nasal cavities
- Radiation therapy around the head and neck
- Head injury
- Certain medications and drugs
- Oral or dental problems
- Diseases affecting the nervous system like multiple sclerosis, Parkinson’s disease, or Alzheimer’s disease
- Nutritional deficiencies
- Tumor, in rare cases
Symptoms
In some cases, the patient has no sense of smell (anosmia) and/or taste (ageusia) at all. In other cases, they have a reduced ability to smell (hyposmia) or taste (hypogeusia) things.
In a condition called dysosmia, the sense of smell is distorted, so that a flower with a pleasant aroma, for example, smells extremely bad.
A patient with a smell and taste disorder that can’t be chalked up to an allergy or respiratory infection should see their doctor. A patient who has had an allergy or respiratory infection should see their doctor if their senses haven’t returned to normal within two weeks of recovering from their illness.
Treatment Options
As smell and taste disorders have multiple causes, the first step in treating them is determining the cause. To that end, the doctor will evaluate medical history, perform a physical exam, and possibly order some tests. They will then base the treatment on the test results.
For example, if the patient smokes, the doctor will advise them to quit and help them find a smoking cessation program. Similarly, if the patient is taking a medication that is known to cause smell and taste disorders, the doctor may change the patient’s prescription.
If the patient’s condition is caused by a physical problem, the doctor will treat it. For example, if the patient has nasal polyps, the doctor will arrange for the patient to undergo surgery to remove the polyps.