Hernandez A K, Woosch D, Haehner A, Hummel T
Smell and Taste Clinic, Department of Otorhinolaryngology, TU Dresden, Dresden, Germany.
Rhinology. 2022 Apr 1;60(2):139-144. doi: 10.4193/Rhin21.378.
This study aimed to examine whether omega-3 supplementation would support olfactory recovery among postviral olfactory dysfunction patients.
Patients with postviral olfactory dysfunction were included in this non-blinded, prospective pilot study. Structured medical history was taken from the patients, including the following: age, sex, history of COVID-19 infection, and duration of symptoms. Patients were randomly assigned to receive olfactory training only (control group) versus olfactory training with omega-3 supplementation (treatment group). All patients exposed themselves twice a day to four odours (phenyl ethyl alcohol [rose], eucalyptol [eucalyptus], citronellal [lemon], and eugenol [cloves]). Olfactory function was measured before and after training using 'Sniffin' Sticks', comprised of tests for odour threshold, discrimination, and identification. The average interval between olfactory tests was 3 months.
Fifty-eight patients were included in the study, 25 men and 33 women. Generally, an improvement in olfactory scores was observed. Compared to the control group, the improvement in odour thresholds was more pronounced in the omega-3 group. Age, sex, and duration of symptoms had no effect on olfactory scores among both control and treatment groups.
Overall, the present results indicate that omega-3 supplementation may be an option for adjunct therapy with olfactory training in patients with postviral olfactory dysfunction.
本研究旨在探讨补充ω-3脂肪酸是否有助于病毒性嗅觉功能障碍患者的嗅觉恢复。
病毒性嗅觉功能障碍患者被纳入这项非盲法前瞻性试点研究。收集患者的结构化病史，包括年龄、性别、新冠病毒感染史和症状持续时间。患者被随机分配接受仅嗅觉训练（对照组）或嗅觉训练并补充ω-3脂肪酸（治疗组）。所有患者每天两次接触四种气味（苯乙醇[玫瑰味]、桉叶油素[桉树叶味]、香茅醛[柠檬味]和丁香酚[丁香味]）。使用“嗅棒”在训练前后测量嗅觉功能，“嗅棒”包括气味阈值、辨别和识别测试。嗅觉测试之间的平均间隔为3个月。
58名患者被纳入研究，其中25名男性和33名女性。总体而言，嗅觉评分有所改善。与对照组相比，ω-3组的气味阈值改善更为明显。年龄、性别和症状持续时间对对照组和治疗组的嗅觉评分均无影响。
总体而言，目前的结果表明，补充ω-3脂肪酸可能是病毒性嗅觉功能障碍患者嗅觉训练辅助治疗的一种选择。
