THE EFFECT OF HUMAN OLFACTORY BIOPSY ON OLFACTION - A PRELIMINARY-REPORT

Normal human olfactory function is subject to a wide variety of factor s. Although biopsy of human olfactory neuroepithelium has been reporte d by several researchers, there are no studies which have evaluated th e effect of this procedure on olfactory function. In this retrospectiv e study, we sought to determine if tissue removal from the olfactory c left has an adverse influence on the sense of smell. Nineteen subjects underwent bilateral olfactory testing and subsequent endoscopic olfac tory mucosal biopsy. All subjects were retested 6 weeks to 1 year afte r olfactory neuroepithelial biopsy. No statistical difference was foun d between olfactory tests performed before or after biopsy. These data suggest that biopsy of human olfactory neuroepithelium has no discern ible adverse effect on the ability to smell.