June 2010
Haehner Antje, Hummel Thomas, Reichmann Heinz
Impairment of olfaction is a characteristic and early feature of
Parkinson’s disease (PD). Recent data indicate that >95% of patients
with PD present with significant olfactory loss. Deficits in sense of
smell may precede clinical motor symptoms by years and can be used to
assess risk of developing PD in otherwise asymptomatic individuals.
This
article summarises the available literature on olfactory function in
PD, which indicates that olfactory tests improve the diagnostic process
in these patients; however, it is still unclear which lesion causes
olfactory loss in PD.
