Background: The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of spinal anesthesia (SA) on olfactory memory using Brief-Smell Identification TestTM (B-SIT).
Patients and methods: This, prospective, clinical study was performed on 40 ASA physical status I-III patients, between 18-65 years of age undergoing a planned elective minor surgery under SA. All participants were preoperatively informed about B-SIT and the mode of application of the test according to the information in the book. B-SIT was applied to each patient preoperatively and the scores were recorded. B-SIT was reapplied to all patients on the 1st and 2nd postoperative days and the scores were recorded. Moreover, development of postdural puncture headache (PDPH) and/or neurological symptoms (such as hearing loss, diplopia) were checked.
Results: Postoperative headache was observed in 7 of the participants and 3 of them was diagnosed to have PDPH. No statistically significant difference was observed in the olfactory memory evaluation of the patients suffering from headache and the 3 patients diagnosed with PDPH. No statistically significant difference was observed in the correct odor answer ratio between the preoperative and postoperative 1st and 2nd days (p > 0.05).
Conclusions: We confirm that SA does not affect olfactory memory. Further studies are necessary to confirm the results of our pilot study in a larger sample.