What is Hyperosmia?

Walking into the kitchen, I stop to ask, “Who got bananas?” My husband replies, “We don’t have any bananas.” But I distinctly smell bananas and now I want one. “I did have some strawberry and banana yogurt earlier today," he says. "I washed out the container and it’s next to the sink." Aha. That’s what I smell.

Sometimes hyperosmia (an increased sense of smell) drives me batty. The smell might be something quite pleasant, like a banana, or something offensive, like my cat going to the bathroom at the other end of the house. Hyperosmia is one of those weird things I’ve learned to live with. It doesn’t affect me all of the time, but occasionally I seem to have the nose of a bloodhound.

An altered sense of smell can be related to multiple sclerosis (MS), neurologic disorders, or other causes. It’s not something that my neurologist routinely questions me about, but it is something you should mention to your doctor if you experience it.

The incidence of impaired sense of smell in people with MS is variable, with estimates ranging from 15 percent to 38.5 percent in different trials. A recent systematic review of the literature found prevalence reports ranging from 20 percent to 45 percent of the MS population. Discrepancies among research results may be due to different testing methods, small numbers of people in the trials, and differences in trial designs.

Read this post in its entirety:
My MS and My Bloodhound Nose