Gender difference in Chinese adults with post-viral olfactory disorder:a hospital-based study.
CONCLUSIONS
This hospital-based study found a gender differences in Chinese subjects with post-viral olfactory disorder (PVOD). Women appear to face higher susceptibility to PVOD, a finding that appears to be magnified with age and duration of olfactory loss.


OBJECTIVE
PVOD is one of the most common reasons for acquired olfactory dysfunction, but there is little data in Chinese populations. We analyzed Chinese subjects with PVOD in order to determine demographic risk factors and clinical features in this major population group.


METHODS
Data from 143 consecutive subjects with PVOD and 117 subjects with other olfactory disorders (controls) were analyzed. This study examined age, duration, and severity of olfactory loss, and compared the differences of subjective and objective olfactory function tests between two groups, using Sniffin' Sticks, Olfactory Event Related Potential (OERP), and olfactory pathway MRI.


RESULTS
There were more women in the PVOD group compared to controls (p < 0.001). Older subjects with PVOD were more likely to be women (p = 0.027), and the proportion of women with PVOD increased with the duration of olfactory loss (p = 0.032). There were no differences in the prevalence of abnormal OERP between two groups, although the female-to-male ratio was higher in the PVOD group (p = 0.041). Women with PVOD were less likely to have olfactory pathway abnormalities by MRI compared to controls (p < 0.001).
a Department of Otorhinolaryngology , Beijing Anzhen Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing Institute of Heart Lung and Blood Vessel Diseases , Beijing , PR China ;
Jia
J
Liu
b Section of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, Department of Surgery , the University of Chicago , Chicago , IL , USA ;
Jayant M
JM
Pinto
c Section of Central Lab , Beijing Tongren Hospital, Capital Medical University , Beijing , PR China ;
Ling
L
Yang
d Department of Otorhinolaryngology , Beijing Chaoyang Hospital, Capital Medical University , Beijing , PR China ;
Li
L
Li
a Department of Otorhinolaryngology , Beijing Anzhen Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing Institute of Heart Lung and Blood Vessel Diseases , Beijing , PR China ;
Jingwu
J
Sun
a Department of Otorhinolaryngology , Beijing Anzhen Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing Institute of Heart Lung and Blood Vessel Diseases , Beijing , PR China ;
Xutao
X
Miao
d Department of Otorhinolaryngology , Beijing Chaoyang Hospital, Capital Medical University , Beijing , PR China ;
Kunyan
K
Li
e Department of Otorhinolaryngology , Shenzhen Children's Hospital , Shenzhen , PR China.
Guowei
G
Chen
a Department of Otorhinolaryngology , Beijing Anzhen Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing Institute of Heart Lung and Blood Vessel Diseases , Beijing , PR China ;
Yongxiang
Y
Wei
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D000368:Aged; D002681:China / Q000453:epidemiology; D005071:Evoked Potentials; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D000857:Olfaction Disorders / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000821:virology; D009833:Olfactory Pathways / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012727:Sex Characteristics; D012903:Smell; D055815:Young Adult
Post-viral olfactory disorder; gender; susceptibility