Brief Smell Identification Test-1, An odor impairment Test in Patients of Depression

It is often seen that the loss of olfaction is the first symptom in patients of depression. Cognitive functions are frequently altered in depression. Olfaction depends on the integration between olfactory tract and limbic system. Both olfactory bulb and limbic system are highly plastic structures that can change organization network based on environmental input. In patients of depression it is seen that there is significant alteration in olfactory bulb volume from normal healthy subjects. Brief smell identification-12 test, a 12-item version of the University of Pennsylvania Smell Identification Test. The test utilizes microencapsulated “scratch and sniff” odorants (Sensonics International, Haddon Heights, NJ). A BSIT score≤8 was considered abnormal. HYPOTHESIS Olfactory functioning is impaired in patients of depression. OBJECTIVES To study the association of olfactory function in patients of depression with clinical variable, if any. To study the olfactory function in patients of depression and compare it with healthy controls MATERIAL AND METHOD 35 Patients of depression as cases and 32 normal healthy controls attending “ Adult Psychiatry OPD Department, KGMU “ were included in this study (age and sex matched). Depression was classified as per ICD-10. BSIT-12 test for olfaction, MMSE and TMT were done for cognition and attention. RESULT The BSIT-12 test score was found lower in all patients of depression as compared with normal subjects. Statistical analysis t-test and chi-square test found value p <0.001. DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSION BSIT-12 as validated test for olfaction may be useful in diagnosing depression severity and prognosis with treatment. self funded This is the full abstract presented at the American Physiology Summit 2023 meeting and is only available in HTML format. There are no additional versions or additional content available for this abstract. Physiology was not involved in the peer review process.