[Olfaction dysfunction]

To report of results obtained with the systematized boarding (physiopathology, diagnosis and treatment) to dysfunction of the smell that can affect the patient's life in significant form.

58 patients were evaluated that went to the clinic with alterations in the olfaction or the pleasure, or both. The protocol includes a guided questionnaire, tests of identification of scent and threshold olfactory, rhinomanometry, nasal histogram, I simple study radiological of the roads breathing superiors and paranasals sinus, besides computer axial tomography and endoscopy.

The most frequent cause in the olfactory dysfunction was the due mechanical obstruction to inflammatory processes, as chronic sinusitis and nasal polyposis, which obstruct the olfactory niche like complication; of the 58 patients, 48% belonged to this group. This inflammatory illness was divided, in turn, in allergy pure 25%, infectious 21% and pattern mixed 54%. The olfactory tests showed hyponia severe. In the general analysis the rest of the olfactory dysfunction was classified as postviral in 20%, posttraumatic in 12.1%, a group miscellaneous 8.6%, caused by toxins 6-9%, being a group of idiopathic cause in 3.4%.