Symposium Overview

Abstract

Chronic inflammatory disorders of the nasal and oral cavities can result from a variety of external and internal causes such as infections, chemical exposures, traumatic injuries or surgery, cancer, medications or radiation therapy. The impact of these conditions on chemosensation has been characterized to varying degrees, and these chemosensory losses can be severe and long-lasting. In spite of the adverse impact on the patients, our understanding of the specific mechanisms underlying inflammation-associated chemosensory loss is limited, and therapeutic options are few and often are ineffective or only transiently effective. The lack of consistent diagnostic tools and criteria for defining these disorders has presented a challenge to researchers attempting to understand the chemosensory impact of inflammation. However, new insights into inflammatory pathways and tools to examine their activity in chemosensory tissues provide an opportunity for identifying targets for new therapeutic approaches. This symposium brought together researchers with diverse perspectives to present the current views, new findings and approaches, and highlight needs for further research in this area. Pathophysiological studies of nasal and oral disorders Welge-Lussen reviewed the clinical cases of olfactory and taste disorders1. The severity of olfactory disorders ranges from reduced olfactory functions to permanent anosmia. Most of these olfactory disorders are caused by nasal inflammation, particularly the sinonasal disorders (SND). Nasal infection, upper respiratory tract infection and allergic response can lead to different types of SND: acute rhinitis, hyposmia, anosmia or allergic rhinitis. It seems that these olfactory defects are not just due to nasal congestion but rather are attributable to the altered olfactory epithelium. Understanding how the alteration initiates and progresses will provide molecular and cellular bases for diagnosis and treatment of these nasal disorders.