Older Adult Normative Data for the Sniffin' Sticks Odor Identification Test

Normative Data for the 12-Item Sniffin' Sticks Odor Identification Test in Older Adults

OBJECTIVE

Quantitative olfactory assessment has demonstrated clinical utility for the evaluation of a range of neurologic, psychiatric, and sinonasal conditions. Here, we provide age, sex, race, and education-specific normative data for the 12-item Sniffin Sticks Odor Identification Test (SSOIT-12) in older Black and White U.S. adults without preclinical or clinical dementia or sinonasal disease.

METHOD

A sample of 2,224 Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities study participants aged 66-89 years were included. A normative regression equation was developed using a linear model for the association of age, sex, race, and education with odor identification score. Regression-based normative mean scores and percentiles were generated by age, sex, race, and education groups.

RESULTS

Participants (mean age = 74 years, 59% women, 20% Black, 48% > high school education) had a mean SSOIT-12 score of 9.8. Age, sex, race, and education were all associated with odor identification performance (all ps < .05). A linear regression model for the predicted SSOIT-12 score was developed for use with an individual's actual SSOIT-12 score in order to calculate the Z-score and corresponding percentile for a specific age, sex, race, and education group. Data are also reported in tabular format.

CONCLUSIONS

Our study provides SSOIT-12 normative data obtained from a large population of White and Black older adults without preclinical or clinical dementia or sinonasal disease living in the USA. These findings can aid clinicians in assessing the degree of olfactory loss, establishing concordance with a person's perception of olfactory difficulties and quantitatively monitoring changes in olfactory performance over time.

The 8-item NHANES pocket smell test®: Normative data

This study provides normative data useful for interpreting scores from the Pocket Smell Test® (PST®), a brief "scratch & sniff" neuropsychological olfactory screening test comprised of 8 items from the 40-item University of Pennsylvania Smell Identification Test (UPSIT®). We combined 3,485 PST® scores from the 2013 to 2014 National Health and Nutrition Survey (NHANES) of persons 40 years of age and older with equivalent PST® items extracted from an UPSIT® database of 3,900 persons ranging in age from 5 to 99 years. Decade-related age- and gender-adjusted percentile normative data were established across the entire age spectrum. Cut-points for defining clinically useful categories of anosmia, probable microsmia, and normosmia were determined using receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analyses. An age-related decline in test scores was evident for both sexes after the age of 40 years, with women outperforming men. Based on the ROC analyses, subjects scoring 3 or less (AUC = 0.81) defines anosmia. Regardless of sex, a score of 7 or 8 on the N-PST® signifies normal function (AUC of 0.71). Probable microsmia is classified as scores extending from 3 to 6. These data provide an accurate means for interpreting PST® scores within a number of clinical and applied settings.

Investigation of Normative Value of Commercialized Taiwan Smell Identification Test

Background

The Taiwan Smell Identification Test (TWSIT) was developed and successfully administered in Taiwanese population since 2015. However, for sanitation reason, the original liquid-jar form of this test is not appropriate. The commercialized TWSIT was then re-designed as “scratch-and-sniff” version: the TIBSIT (Top International Biotech, Taipei, Taiwan). This project aims to investigate the normative value of TIBSIT in different age groups and genders.

Methods

Volunteers aged 20 to 80 with no subjective smell loss were recruited in a rhinology clinic. The participants were given full instructions on using the TIBSIT.

Results

Two hundred and nine healthy subjects (female: male =107: 102) were enrolled into this study. The median TIBSIT score in female and male subjects is 47 and 46, respectively. Subjects were further divided into three age groups: (A) 20∼34 years (n = 77), (B) 35∼54 years (n = 77), and (C) 55∼80 years (n = 55). The TIBSIT scores at the tenth percentile value at each age group of male patients are 43, 42 and 37; while the scores at the tenth percentile value at each age group of female patients are 42, 42 and 41. TIBSIT score was significantly and inversely correlated with age (Spearman rho = − 0.20, p = 0.004.).

Conclusion

We established the normative values of the new TIBSIT in different age groups in Taiwan. Future nation-wide screening is needed for more sophisticated norms establishment.

Olfactory loss and aging: connections with health and well-being

Age-related olfactory dysfunction, or presbyosmia, is a common sensory impairment in aging adults. People in this demographic group with comorbid conditions or exposure to viral, traumatic, or environmental insults remain at the greatest risk for impairment. Several methods for assessing olfaction exist, but they are only available in special settings and require consideration of age, sex, ancestry, and cognition. Perhaps most importantly, olfactory dysfunction has been suggested as an early sign of Alzheimer's and Parkinson's disease and therefore may serve as a tool in the diagnosis and prognosis of these neurodegenerative conditions. Outside of this context, olfactory loss also impacts nutrition, safety, and social relationships, and even predicts mortality itself. This review covers the detection and manifestations of olfactory decline in aging individuals and the myriad ways in which olfactory impairment is connected to their health and well-being.