Loss Of Taste And Smell Persist In Man After A Car Accident

A reader told Dr. Roach that her 82-year-old husband has been unable to smell or taste since 2024, after being hit by a car while walking. The accident caused a compression fracture of the spine and trauma to the head; since then, he has had no sense of smell or taste, with partial, limited response to treatment. He has seen a primary care physician and an ear, nose and throat specialist, used scented items and nasal rinses, and occasionally tastes the first bite before losing it again. Dr. Roach said smell loss can lead to a subjective loss of taste and that prognosis after head trauma is worse than after temporary causes like sinus infections. He noted animal stem-cell studies but no human clinical trials, and mentioned platelet-rich plasma trials not yet recruiting, with no dramatic results so far.