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Smell Loss
A disease with long term medical consequences devastating tens of millions of patients worldwide with no approved therapies
Olfaction Powers and Drives Smell, Taste,Memory, Emotion, and Instinct
Our noses have 10-20 million olfactory neurons, each expressing thousands of receptor copies, chosen from hundreds of distinct olfactory receptor types. Signaling from these neurons is responsible for our sense of smell and 80% of our perception of taste, empowering healthy humans to distinguish a trillion or more different flavors. Furthermore, our olfactory nerve directly feeds to our hippocamus, amygdala, and hypothalamus, the memory, emotion, and instinct centers of our brain.
Smell and Taste Are Lost When Smell-Sensing Neurons Are Depleted From the Olfactory Epithelium
Aging and viral infection damage olfactory neurons, driving a majority of the cases of smell loss. When smell is lost, taste is severely compromised too. Age related and post viral smell loss are amenable to regenerative medicine.
Other causes include blockage (inflammation/polyps), head trauma, and congenital.
Loss of Smell and Taste Profoundly Impacts Health and Quality of Life
Smell loss and the resulting taste loss have wide ranging effects. Increased mortality. Reduced quality of life. Increased anxiety and depression. Nutritional compromise. Increased odds of frailty. Reduced personal safety and poor olfactory hazard perception. Strong association with cognitive decline, dementia, Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s.
Patient testimonials commonly highlight how olfactory loss can lead to depression, loss of cherished memories, feelings of social isolation and ostracism, weight changes, and safety issues.
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