title: Can we smell without an olfactory bulb?
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Lack of an olfactory bulb (OB) is typically associated with anosmia.
  
  
  METHODS
  We present a patient with subnormal olfactory function in whom the OB could not be detected with magnetic resonance imaging (MRI).
  
  
  RESULTS
  Olfactory function was evaluated on two occasions. Orthonasal olfactory function was assessed with the "Sniffin' Sticks" test providing a score equivalent to hyposmia. Retronasal olfactory function was studied with "smell powders" indicating a decreased, but not absence of, olfactory function. Importantly, chemosensory event-related potentials were clearly present in response to olfactory and trigeminal stimuli.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  This indicates that olfactory function may be present in some subjects even when an OB can not be detected with MRI.
authors.affiliation: Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Cliniques Universitaires Saint Luc, Brussels, Belgium. philippe.rombaux@orlo.ucl.ac.be
authors.forename: Philippe
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Rombaux
authors.forename: André
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Mouraux
authors.forename: Bernard
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Bertrand
authors.forename: Thierry
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Duprez
authors.forename: Thomas
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Hummel
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001921:Brain / Q000473:pathology; D005071:Evoked Potentials; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging / Q000379:methods; D009812:Odorants; D000857:Olfaction Disorders / Q000503:physiopathology*; D009830:Olfactory Bulb / Q000033:anatomy & histology / Q000473:pathology / Q000502:physiology*; D009833:Olfactory Pathways; D012684:Sensory Thresholds; D012903:Smell / Q000502:physiology*; D013268:Stimulation, Chemical; D015899:Tomography, Emission-Computed, Single-Photon / Q000379:methods