Features of the psychoemotional state of patients with olfactory dysfunction

Introduction. In foreign studies, dysosmia is more often considered as a marker for for diagnostics various pathologies. The question of whether olfactory disorder can act as an etiological factor and influence the occurrence of pathological psychoemotional states (anxiety, depression) remains ambiguous.

Aim. Тo assess the correlation between the severity of olfactory dysfunction and changes in the psychoemotional state (depression, anxiety disorder).

Materials and methods. 60 patients participated in this study. According to the nosology, the patients were divided into 3 groups: polypous rhinosinusitis (n = 23); post-traumatic (n = 10) and post-infectious olfactory dysfunction (n = 27). Before the study, all patients underwent an assessment of their olfactory identification ability using a Russian olfactory test. The study included patients who, according to the test results: olfactory identification ability < 16 points. The PHQ-9 (Patient Health Questionnaire 9) and the GAD-7 (Generalized Anxiety Disorder 7) were used as a method for diagnosing depression and anxiety.

Results. When analyzing the obtained data for the entire sample of patients using Spearman correlation, a correlation was found between the severity of olfactory dysfunction and changes in the psychoemotional state (depression rs = -0.388, p < 0.01; anxiety rs = -0.275, p = 0.034). Statistically significant results were also obtained in groups of patients for each nosology: polypous rhinosinusitis rs = -0.485, p = 0.019; post-infectious olfactory dysfunction rs = -0.501, p < 0.01; post-traumatic olfactory dysfunction rs = -0.945, p < 0.001. Similar results were found in patients with anxiety symptoms: polypous rhinosinusitis rs = -0.46, p = 0.027; post-infectious dysfunction rs = -0.52, p < 0.01 and post-traumatic dysfunction rs = -0.73, p = 0.017.

Conclusions. The obtained data substantiate the clinical significance of a comprehensive examination of patients with olfactory disorders using validated scales for assessing symptoms of depression and anxiety.

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