Recovery of Olfactory Function in Postviral Olfactory Dysfunction Patients after Acupuncture Treatment

Abstract

Introduction. The aims of this study were to assess the impact of traditional Chinese acupuncture (TCA) in postviral olfactory dysfunction (PVOD) patients who were refractory to standardized treatment and to compare the results with the impact observed in an observation group. Methods. Fifty patients who presented to the outpatient clinic with PVOD and were refractory to standardized treatment were included: 25 were treated with TCA and 25 patients were simply observed. A subjective olfactory test was performed using the University of Pennsylvania Smell Identification Test (UPSIT). The effects of TCA were compared with the results obtained in the observation group. Results. Improved olfactory function was observed in eleven patients treated with TCA compared with four patients in the observation group. This study revealed significantly improved olfactory function outcomes in patients who underwent acupuncture compared with the observation group. No significant differences in olfaction recovery were found according to age, gender, or duration of disease between the two groups; however, hyposmic patients recovered at a higher rate than anosmic patients. Conclusion. TCA may aid the treatment of PVOD patients who are refractory to drugs or other therapies.

Postinfectious olfactory loss: A retrospective study on 791 patients

“…29,30 Such cumulative insult, together with the fact that the challenge of regeneration in advanced age is significantly reduced, might be the reason why the recovery of olfactory functions after postinfectious olfactory loss decreases with increasing age. When it comes to the sex of the participants, in line with other studies 6,10,15,20 , this predictor was not significantly associated with the outcome. Intriguingly, the interval between the first and the second assessment 6,15,20 and the duration of disease until the first baseline test did not play a significant role in the model.…”

“…Regarding the role played by the disease duration, studies in literature are contradictive. Some results show that a longer disease duration is associated with less subsequent improvement, 2,6,14,15,20 although others 10,21 observed that longer periods after onset of olfactory loss were positively related to recovery. At odds with previous work, disease duration was unrelated to outcome, although the b value was negative, suggesting that the longer the disease, the lower the olfactory recovery (Table I).…”

“…Usually, anosmia is present in 36% to 53% of the patients and hyposmia in 47% to 64% . Although the literature reports that topical steroids, vitamin B, acupuncture, zinc, and α‐lipoid acid can be used to treat postinfectious olfactory loss, no effective therapy is available to date except olfactory training . However, it has been estimated that about one‐third of patients may experience spontaneous recovery, usually within 2 to 3 years after the infectious event .…”

Treatment of post‐viral olfactory dysfunction: an evidence‐based review with recommendations

“…57 Dai et al produced similar results, with 11/25 patients in the TCA group having improved olfactory function compared to 4/25 in the no treatment group (p = 0.031). 56 Frequency of TCA treatment differed between these 2 studies, and neither paper reported any adverse events related to TCA. Summary:…”

“…Traditional Chinese acupuncture (TCA) was evaluated as a treatment for PVOD in 2 level 4 studies after failure to respond to 1 to 6 months of oral steroids, vitamin B, olfactory training, or topical steroids (Table 10). 56,57 Vent et al demonstrated an increase in mean TDI score from 13.5 to 17.9 after TCA. 57 Additionally, 8/15 patients attained an increase in TDI score of ࣙ6 points (MCID), significantly improved compared to controls receiving vitamin B complex (p = 0.02).…”