Olfactory reference syndrome ors, also known as olfactory reference disorder, is an underrecognized and often severe condition that has similarities to obsessivecompulsive disorder ocd and body dysmorphic disorder bdd. Olfactory reference syndrome with suicidal attempt treated. Is olfactory reference syndrome an obsessivecompulsive. Olfactory reference syndrome ors is an illness currently considered a delusional disorder under the dsmiv criteria. Generally, patients with olfactory reference syndrome are concerned with multiple body parts. The core symptom is preoccupation with the belief that one emits a foul or offensive body odor, which is not perceived by others. Diagnosis and phenotypic assessment of trimethylaminuria. The obsession may be an exaggerated, disproportionate concern with a natural body smell, or mayinvolve an entirely imagined odor. However, only a few small studies have systematically assessed orss clinical features. Handbook on obsessivecompulsive and related disorders. Olfactory reference syndrome ors is a condition in which a person mistakenly believes he or she exudes an unpleasant body odor. The present case is that of a 75yearold african american woman, with an unclear past psychiatric history, who was brought into our emergency room after a suicide attempt. Olfactory reference syndrome ors, preoccupation with a false belief that one emits a foul or offensive body odor, has been described around the world for more than a century.
Olfactory reference syndrome ors is characterised by the erroneous belief that one emits a foul or unpleasant body odour. In 1891, potts described a delusional 50yearold man who had been troubled for the past three months with smelling a very bad odor, which he likened to that of a backhouse, and which came from his own person. Olfactory reference syndrome ors is a psychiatric condition characterized by a persistent preoccupation with body odor and is regarded as a common clinical entity known as jikoshukyofu or jiko. Mckenna skip to main content accessibility help we use cookies to distinguish you from other users and to provide you with a better experience on our websites. Olfactory reference syndrome psychiatric disorders merck. For instance, the tks subject fears causing offence to others, whereas the sad subject is more. Olanzapine improved symptoms and olfactory function in an. Olfactory reference syndrome ors, also known as autodysomophobia and bromosis, is characterized by excessive, irrational fear that one is emitting a foul or unpleasant odor. Olfactory reference syndrome ors is an obsessive, irrational fear that one is emitting a foul or unpleasant odor. Relationships between pathologic subjective halitosis. Olfactory reference syndrome is a new syndrome coined by researchers whove discovered that amongst people who think they smell bad.
Olfactory reference syndrome ors is one of the varieties of the somatic type of the delusional disorder, and it is characterized by the mistaken statement of a patient who declares the issuance of a foul odor coming from his own body and that others may notice. Challenges in diagnosis and treatment of olfactory reference. Hysteria and malingering have a place amongst these disorders. Olfactory reference syndrome developed after stressful. Olfactory reference syndrome is a preoccupation with the false belief that one emits a foul and offensive body odor. Olfactory reference syndrome ors has been defined as a psychiatric condition characterized by persistent preoccupation about body odour accompanied by shame, embarrassment, significant distress, avoidance behaviour and social isolation.
Successful treatment of olfactory reference syndrome with paroxetine to the editor. These preoccupa tions lead to contrite reactions for example, taking a. Olfactory reference syndrome ors is a mental disorder in which there is a persistent, false belief about and preoccupation with emitting abnormal body odors which are foul and offensive to other individuals. Patients often limit their public appearances and restrict their social and occupational encounters.
Department of neurology, montreal general hospital, montreal, canada. The published literature on olfactory reference syndrome ors spans more than. Update article body dysmorphic disorder and olfactory reference disorder. Successful treatment of olfactory reference syndrome with. Olfactory reference syndrome ors has been described around the world for more than a century. Olfactory reference syndrome ors is characterized by a persistent and. Olfactory reference syndrome developed after stressful life events and response to pharmacological treatment. Disorders dsmv it has been proposed to break off ors as an independent pathology. Pdf although not included as a disorder in the dsm5 diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders, 5th edition, olfactory reference. Olfactory reference syndrome appears to overlap with conditions such as schizophrenia, social phobia, obsessive compulsive.
Pdf olfactory reference syndrome treated with electroconvulsive. However, in a tertiary referral unit for the behavioral treatment of psychiatric. Olfactory reference syndrome ors is a clinical condition that causes patients to be anxious about emitting body odors that may be offensive for other people 1. Olfactory reference syndrome ors is a psychiatric condition in which there is a persistent false belief and preoccupation with the idea of emitting abnormal body odors which the patient thinks are foul and offensive to other individuals. Olfactory hallucinations may also occur in alzheimers disease and alcohol withdrawal. This belief causes them significant distress and usually makes them less able to functionfor example, by preventing them from going out in public. There have only been a few case reports on this interesting syndrome so far. Olfactory reference syndrome ors has been defined as a psychiatric condition characterized by persistent preoccupation about body odor accompanied by shame, embarrassment, significant distress and avoidance behavior.
The core symptomatology of the olfactory reference syndrome ors is characterized by a preoccupation with the belief that one emits an offensive odor, albeit not perceived by others. Patients with ors react regretfully because they feel shame for being, as they believe, the cause of the smell 1. Two cases of olfactory reference syndrome, with accompanying. Many patients with olfactory reference syndrome are refractory to therapy and such patients are likely to stop treatment. In the upcoming edition of the diagnostic and statistical manual of mental. We present a case of a 16 year old white british male who presented with olfactory reference syndrome with prominent referential thinking, without accompanying hallucinations or. Problematic preoccupation with perceived body odor. Pdf olfactory reference syndrome ors has been defined as a psychiatric condition characterized by persistent preoccupation about body odor. The published literature on olfactory reference syndrome ors spans more than a century and provides consistent descriptions of its clinical features. Prysephillips 1975 found olfactory symptoms to be an early and predominating complaint in half of his patients with typical endogenous depression and called this olfactory reference syndrome. There are subtle yet distinct differences between tks and dsmdefined social anxiety disorder sad. Anosmia is occasionally congenital, sometimes hereditary. In 1891, potts described a delusional 50yearold man who had been troubled for the past three months with smelling a very bad odor, which he likened to that of a. Kyle is a 37yearold single white male who believes that he has severe halitosis bad breath and flatulence, which makes him stinky and smelly.
Olfactory reference syndrome is similar to obsessivecompulsive disorders. These delusions often lead sufferers to believe others are being offended by the odor but will not verbalize this to them. Olfactory reference syndrome is characterised by persistent preoccupation of body odour. Olfactory reference syndrome symptoms and treatment. Olfactory reference syndrome ors katharine phillips, m. Emdr and olfactory reference syndrome a case series. Olfactory reference disorder ord, also referred to as olfactory reference syndrome, is a persistent preoccupation with the belief that the sufferer emits a foul and unpleasant body odour despite lack of evidence to the contrary. The disorder is characterized also by delusions of reference and olfactory hallucinations which may be present. However, the mouth is known to be the most common source of body odor for those with olfactory reference syndrome, which could imply.
Body dysmorphic disorder and olfactory reference disorder. Apropos of an olfactory reference syndrome case actas. Olanzapine improved symptoms and olfactory function in an olfactory reference syndrome patient ale. How to help patients with olfactory reference syndrome. Stereotactic lesions of the amygdala can abolish both olfactory hallucinations and the accompanying psychiatric disorder, which would imply that the. Olfactory reference syndrome ors is characterised by the erroneous belief that one emits a foul. Olfactory reference syndrome ors is characterized by a persistent and distressing preoccupation that the individual emits an unpleasant body odour that is not perceived by others. The odor is not perceived by others and is usually described by patients as originating in regions naturally associated with bad. Persons with ors often misinterpret others behaviors, e. Taijinkyofusho tks has long been considered as a japanese culturebound form of social anxiety disorder, although subsequent casereports from countries outside japan have dispelled this notion. People with olfactory reference disorder believe that they have an offensive body odor even though they do not. Auditory, visual, tactile, olfactory, and bodily hallucinations in patients with obsessivecompulsive disorder volume issue 2 leonardo f. This article was initially published in the winter 2018 edition of the ocd newsletter.
Ors shares manifestations in some psychiatric disorders. Patients believe that they emit a foul odor, causing them great emotional distress and negative social consequences. Pdf apropos of an olfactory reference syndrome case. Olfactory reference syndrome ors is characterized by the erroneous belief that one emits an offensive body odor which is not perceived by others and that the odor displeases others. Olfactory reference syndrome merck manuals consumer version.
1065 1304 220 372 1302 312 255 1170 200 1342 546 1140 398 994 336 438 114 925 885 994 1098 239 256 1234 1422 760 403 1430 1407 863 964 726 1377 511 1250 289 48 184 247 1400 435 823 1096