Abstract
Objective: To assess olfactory dysfunction in Parkinson's disease (PD) patients in Pakistan utilizing an autochthonous smell test.
 Setting: Tertiary care center, single-center study.
 Materials and Methods: Eighty-seven non-demented patients with PD, who fulfilled Queen Square Brain Bank Criteria were enrolled at the Movement Disorder Clinic, Lahore General Hospital (LGH), Lahore. Fifty-eight controls matched by gender, age, and place of residence were enrolled among patients and visitors attending other hospital clinics. Both groups underwent olfactory testing using the Pakistani Smell Identification test (PKSIT). The participants were required to identify the smell from a set of choices and were scored out of 10.
 Results: Among patients in the study group, the mean duration of disease was 4.7 years (range 6 months to 19 years). The PD onset mean age was 52.15 ± 13.02 years among patients. The mean number of smell test items accurately recognized by the PD patients was 4.55 ± 2.4. A multiple linear regression demonstrated that age (P < 0.05) but not disease duration (P = 0.899) was a significant determinant of the smell test result in PD and control groups. The mean number of smell test items appropriately recognized by the controls was 7.33 ± 1.69. Logistic regression showed that the PKSIT had 73.2% sensitivity and 84.3% specificity to distinguish PD from control.
 Conclusion: PKSIT being easily available, cheap, and more convenient to use in the Pakistani population, can be used in the evaluation of olfactory dysfunction in PD subjects.
Highlights
During the early nineteenth century, a novel disease was described by James Parkinson in the shape of “shaking palsy” which is currentlyPak
The mean age of disease onset in Parkinson's disease (PD) patients was 52.15 ± 13.02 years
The mean number of smell test items accurately recognized by patients with PD was 4.55 ± 2.45
Summary
During the early nineteenth century, a novel disease was described by James Parkinson in the shape of “shaking palsy” which is currentlyPak. The amount of patients with PD is anticipated to twofold by 2030 because of the elderly populace that is becoming an important national burden among several countries.[3]. After Alzheimer's disease, PD has believed to be the 2nd most prevalent neuro-degenerative syndrome.[4,5] The Parkinson’s disease has two types, familial; hereditarily inherited in either an autosomal prevailing/recessive way and idiopathic (sporadic); believed to progress from interactions of gene-environment.[6] It is due to numerous motor as well as non-motor symptoms (NMSs).[7] The PD key motor symptoms are bradykinesia, resting tremor postural reflex problem, and rigidity.[8] In addition to such dopaminergic motor indications, non-motor indications progress due to cholinergic, noradrenergic, serotonergic as well as autonomic nervous system immersion,[9] including cognitive damage, neuropsychiatric indications, olfactory dysfunction (OD), and sleep problems, a few of which could precede motor dysfunction development. PD non-motor symptoms could have an important impact on life quality than the motor indications and are considerably related to decreased well-being.[10]
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