Abstract—The data on the influence of hypoxic hypoxia on the human ability to identify smells are presented. The study was conducted in male volunteers aged from 18 to 20 years without ENT disorders with low tolerance to hypoxia under the supervision of a physician. The University of Pennsylvania Smell Identification Test adapted for Russians was used to evaluate the ability to identify smells. Hypoxic hypoxia was simulated by breathing with a gas mixture containing 10.5% oxygen. The oxygen level in the blood was monitored by the degree of hemoglobin oxygenation measured with a digital portable pulse oximeter. The results of the study indicate that the human ability to identify smells is disturbed under a low concentration of oxygen in inhaled air (p ≤ 0.01). Such a reduction in olfactory memory may indicate a worsening of cognitive functions of the brain under acute hypoxic hypoxia in humans.
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ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
This work was financially supported by the Program of State Academies of Science for Basic Research in 2014–2020 (GP-14, Section 63).
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Translated by D. Novikova
Abbreviations: UPSIT, University of Pennsylvania Smell Identification Test (a standard olfactory test system developed in the United States).
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Bigdaj, E.V., Bezgacheva, E.A., Samojlov, V.O. et al. The Influence of Hypoxic Hypoxia on the Human Ability to Identify Smells. BIOPHYSICS 63, 814–819 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1134/S0006350918050044
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1134/S0006350918050044