Decreased frontal and orbital volumes and increased cerebellar volumes in patients with anosmia Of Unknown origin: A subtle connection?

Avnioglu S., Sahin C., Cankaya S., Ozen O., Dikici R., Yilmaz H., ...More

Journal of Psychiatric Research, vol.160, pp.86-92, 2023 (SCI-Expanded) identifier identifier

  • Publication Type: Article / Article
  • Volume: 160
  • Publication Date: 2023
  • Doi Number: 10.1016/j.jpsychires.2023.01.015
  • Journal Name: Journal of Psychiatric Research
  • Journal Indexes: Science Citation Index Expanded (SCI-EXPANDED), Social Sciences Citation Index (SSCI), Scopus, Academic Search Premier, ASSIA, PASCAL, BIOSIS, Psycinfo
  • Page Numbers: pp.86-92
  • Keywords: Anosmia, Brain volume, MRI, VBM, VolBrain
  • Istanbul Medipol University Affiliated: No

Abstract

Purpose: Neuroimaging studies have shown that anosmia is accompanied by a decreased olfactory bulb volume, yet little is known about alterations in cerebral and cerebellar lobule volumes. The purpose of this study was to investigate structural brain alterations in anosmic patients. Methods: Sixteen anosmic patients (mean age 42.62 ± 16.57 years; 6 women and 10 men) and 16 healthy controls (mean age 43.37 ± 18.98 years; 9 women and 7 men) were included in this retrospective study. All subjects who underwent magnetic resonance imaging scans were analyzed using VolBrain and voxel-based morphometry after olfactory testing. Results: Despite being statistically insignificant, analysis using VBM revealed greater gray matter (GM) and white matter in the anosmia group compared to the healthy subjects. However, decreased GM (p < 0.001) and increased cerebellar (p = 0.046) volumes were observed in the anosmic patients. Conclusions: The study revealed structural brain alterations in specific areas beyond the olfactory bulb. Our results indicate that the cerebellum may play an exceptional role in the olfactory process and that this will be worth evaluating with further dynamic neuroimaging studies.