title: The depth of the olfactory sulcus is an indicator of congenital anosmia.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  In congenital anosmia, the OB and OT can be aplastic or hypoplastic. In clinical routine, these are sometimes difficult to assess. We thus wanted to investigate morphologic differences of the OS in patients with IA since birth or early childhood in comparison with controls, to investigate whether there is a depth of OS that is predictive of IA.
  
  
  METHODS
  Within the context of a 2-center study, we investigated 36 patients with IA in comparison with 70 controls. MR imaging was performed with a standard quadrature head coil (1.5T; T1- and T2-weighted spin-echo sequences were used on the coronal plane). We assessed the depth of OS in the PPTE.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Looking at the depth of the OS in the PPTE, we found that patients with IA had a significantly smaller OS compared with controls (P < .001). None of the healthy controls exhibited a depth of <8 mm. In patients with IA, 10 had an OS deeper than 8 mm, while 26 had an OS smaller than 8 mm. Thus, a depth of the OS less than 8 mm clearly indicates IA, with a specificity of 1 and a sensitivity of 0.72.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  In IA, the depth of the OS in the PPTE is a useful clinical indicator. Indeed, if it is ≤8 mm, it clearly indicates IA, with a specificity of 1.
authors.affiliation: Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Université Catholique de Louvain, Brussels, Belgium. caroline.huart@uclouvain.be
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Huart
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Meusel
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Gerber
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Duprez
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Rombaux
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Hummel
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D001530:Belgium; D002648:Child; D006801:Humans; D021621:Imaging, Three-Dimensional / Q000379:methods*; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging / Q000379:methods*; D008875:Middle Aged; D008954:Models, Biological; D000857:Olfaction Disorders / Q000151:congenital* / Q000473:pathology*; D009830:Olfactory Bulb / Q000473:pathology*; D009833:Olfactory Pathways / Q000473:pathology*; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity; D055815:Young Adult