Olfactory dysfunction in multiple sclerosis: Relation to longitudinal changes in plaque numbers in central olfactory structures

Scores on the University of Pennsylvania Smell Identification Test (UPSIT), as well as the numbers of MRI-determined plaques within the inferior frontal and temporal lobes, were obtained on three or four separate occasions in each of five MS patients over an 18- to 20-month period. A close association was observed, longitudinally, between the remission and exacerbation of plaque numbers and UPSIT scores, with more plaques reflecting lower UPSIT scores. These observations further support the hypothesis that olfactory loss in MS is associated with fluctuations in plaque numbers in central olfactory brain regions.