Testing Olfaction in Parkinson's and Controls TOP-C
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Smell testing in patients and controls to establish comparative data for two established techniques.
IRAS ID
160202
Contact name
Donald Grosset
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde
Duration of Study in the UK
1 years, 7 months, 14 days
Research summary
Loss of sense of smell is often found in early Parkinson’s disease, and is being studied in screening and observational studies. However, two different methods are being used in these studies, which limits comparison of results. This study will test sense of smell using the two main established methods, the University of Pennsylvania smell identification test (which originated in America and uses a scratch and sniff method), and the Sniffin Sticks test (which originated in Europe and uses a ‘felt-pen’ type of test). The testing will use both methods in the same person, and will be performed in people with Parkinson’s disease, and in healthy volunteers. This will allow a comparison of results from the two different types of test, which will help analyse data in other studies. The current problem is that results from studies using different tests cannot be compared, and this study will rectify this.
Sense of smell is better in women than men, and worsens with ageing. We have therefore designed the study to collect data from both women and men, and at different ages. 220 people will be recruited to the study (110 male, and 110 female), of whom half will have Parkinson’s and half will be normal controls. Age bands will be equally from the following categories: less than 50 years, 50-59 years, 60-69 years, 70-79 years and greater than 80 years, so each group will have 22 subjects.REC name
Wales REC 6
REC reference
14/WA/1264
Date of REC Opinion
11 Dec 2014
REC opinion
Favourable Opinion