Welding Fumes Linked to Anosmia

Eye protection has always been standard safety gear for professional welders but little consideration was given to the occupational hazard of that least-appreciated of the five senses…until now. A new study by the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine has found that welders who work in enclosed spaces with poor ventilation may be at risk for loss of sense of smell.

“This is the first study to clearly demonstrate that welders who work in confined spaces without adequate respiratory protection are at risk for damaging their sense of smell,” says Richard Doty, Read more

A Proactive Approach to Parkinson’s Disease

The University of Pennsylvania Smell Identification Test (UPSIT) is the most widely used–and useful–clinical olfactory test in the world. Developed and practiced at the university’s renowned Smell and Taste Center, the UPSIT consists of four booklets containing ten microencapsulated odors, each accompanied by four possible responses from which the participant is asked to choose. Studies using the UPSIT have positively linked olfactory dysfunction to a variety of causes ranging from head trauma and respiratory infection to neurological disorders like Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease. The value of the test in Read more