A new procedure for the short screening of olfactory function using five items from the "Sniffin' Sticks" identification test kit

Background: The aim of this study was to create a new protocol based oil the "Sniffin' Sticks" test kit, which would be suitable for short screening of olfactory function. Methods: One hundred forty-one subjects Were included in the investigation. In a first session, 106 subjects were presented five odorants together With a list of 20 descriptors. Additional choices were "no odor" and "undefinable." The established 16-item identification test was then performed to assess olfactory function. In another session, the new procedure was repeated oil 21 subjects to check the test-retest reliability. The Brief Smell Identification Test was used together with the five-item test in all additional 35 subjects for additional validation. Results: The correlation coefficients between the results of the new test and the established procedures were r(106) = 0.61 and r(35) = 0.77 (p < 0.01). The new test procedure revealed two groups of subjects (score of 0 and scores 4 or 5). These groups had no overlapping results in the established odor identification tests. Repeated measurements of the short test showed a correlation coefficient of r(21) = 0.77 (p < 0.01). Conclusion: The present data indicate the usefulness of the short screening test. Given a maximum of one error, the test is able to confirm the presence of normosmia or mild hyposmia. The kit call be carried in a pocket and the test takes only 3 minutes to perform.