Restoring the sense of smell to COVID-19 patients
Thomas Hummel, who researches smell and taste disorders at the Technical University of Dresden in Germany, describes international efforts to help patients who have lost their sense of smell, perhaps as a result of COVID-19, head trauma, chronic rhinosinusitis, and neurodegenerative diseases.
Hummel points to the development of cochlear implants to help patients with hearing loss. \u201cThere could be similar implants inside the nasal cavity connected to the olfactory bulb, eliciting a pattern that might make sense to the brain,\u201d he says.
Describing his career path, Hummel, who is also a medical doctor, says unlike some other clinical research areas, his is more heavily dependent on international collaborations. \u201cWhen you work in cardiovascular diseases you just look around the corner and there\u2019s somebody who works on cardiovascular disorders. In the sense of smell it is different. You look around the corner, and there\u2019s nobody.\u201d
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