The Adaptive Olfactory Measure of Threshold (ArOMa-T): A rapid test of olfactory function

Abstract

Purpose: Many widely-used psychophysical tests of olfaction have limitations that can create barriers to adoption outside research settings. For example, tests that measure the ability to identify odors may confound sensory performance with memory recall, verbal ability, and past experience with the odor. Conversely, threshold-based tests typically avoid these issues, but are labor intensive. Additionally, many commercially available olfactory tests are slow and may require a trained administrator, making them impractical for use in a short wellness visit or other broad clinical assessment. Methods: We tested the performance of the Adaptive Olfactory Measure of Threshold (ArOMa-T) -- a novel odor detection threshold test that employs an adaptive Bayesian algorithm paired with a disposable odor-delivery card -- in a non-clinical sample of individuals (n=534) at the 2021 Twins Day Festival in Twinsburg, OH. Results: Participants successfully completed the test in under 3 min with a false alarm rate of 9.6% and a test-retest reliability of 0.61. Odor detection thresholds differed by sex (~3.2-fold) and between the youngest and oldest age groups (~8.7-fold), consistent with prior work. In an exploratory analysis, we failed to observe evidence of detection threshold differences between participants who reported a history of COVID-19 and matched controls who did not. We also found evidence for broad-sense heritability of odor detection thresholds. Conclusion: Together, these data indicate the ArOMa-T can determine odor detection thresholds. The ArOMa-T may be particularly valuable in clinical or field settings where rapid and portable assessment of olfactory function is needed.

Competing Interest Statement

Technology associated with the ArOMa-T is the subject of a provisional patent filing by the University of Florida, Pennsylvania State University and Arizona State University, with authors SDM, JEH and RCG named as inventors. SDM, JEH and RCG are owners of Redolynt, LLC, which they co-founded in 2021 and which has obtained an option to license the ArOMa-T technology. This financial interest has been reviewed by the Individual Conflict of Interest Committee at each of their respective universities and is being actively being managed by each university. None of the other authors have any additional conflicts to disclose. All findings and conclusions in this publication belong solely to the author(s), and should not be construed to represent any official U.S. Government determination, position, or policy.

Funding Statement

This work was supported by funding from the National Institutes of Health, including grant 1U01DC019573 (EMW, SM, JEH and RCG), 1U01DC019578 (DDR), T32DC000014 (MEH) and Z01AA000135 (PVJ).

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The protocol was approved by the local Institutional Review Board for the Monell Chemical Senses Center (IRB protocol#: 843798), and the study followed the principles of the Declaration of Helsinki. Per University of Florida requirements, an additional protocol was approved to receive and analyze anonymized aggregate data (IRB protocol #: IRB202102968).

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All fully de-identified data are available upon reasonable request to the authors.

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