Dados do Trabalho

Título

Prevalence of olfactory dysfunction using the Connecticut test and its association with obstructive sleep apnea

Introdução

The prevalence of both olfactory dysfunction (OD) and obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) has been estimated to be high in the literature. Furthermore, the association between these two disorders has been demonstrated. Most studies have investigated OD in patients with OSA syndrome using the Sniffin Sticks Test, which may be less accessible due to its cost.

Objetivo

To estimate the prevalence of OD using the Connecticut test (CT), a lower-cost olfactory test, and to investigate its association with OSA.

Métodos

This is a cross-sectional study with prospective allocation and convenience sample, from a University Hospital. Individuals between 18 and 65 years old were included. Those with a history of upper respiratory tract infection in the last 30 days; severe traumatic brain injury; smokers; previous treatment for OSA; chronic rhinosinusitis, schizophrenia, neurological and infectious diseases that occur with olfactory dysfunction were excluded. The diagnosis of OD was performed using CT and for OSA, type 1 polysomnography (PSG). The CT was categorized according to its total score (ODT), threshold (ODTH) and identification (ODI). Each CT category was analyzed regarding to sociodemographic and clinical history data, the Epworth Sleepiness Scale (ESS), anthropometric measurements and PSG data. The significance level was considered less than 5% (p value).

Resultados

The sample consisted of 74 participants. The prevalence of OD was 50.7% and OSA was 72.8%. Among OD the prevalence of OSA was 76%. In OD there was a predominance of females (65%) and the mean age was 53 years. In the CT, the ODT and ODTH categories were associated with the number of medications used (0.014 and 0.028), ESS (<0.001 and 0.034) and report of respiratory events (0.016 and 0.026). The ODI category was associated with age (0.024), use of sleeping medication (0.047), ESS (0.011), Body Mass Index (0.002), abdominal, calf and hip circumferences (0.012, 0.008, 0.003, respectively) and minimum saturation in PSG (0.021). There was no association between OD and OSA, when using CT, either in the ODT (0.7), ODTH (0.8) or ODI (0.8) categories.

Conclusões

The prevalence of OD identified by the Connecticut olfactory test can be considered high. However, in this sample, using this test, there was no association between OD and OSA, unlike other studies that conducted the Sniffin Sticks Test to investigate OD.

Palavras -chave

Olfactory dysfunction; obstructive sleep apnea; prevalence