Olfactory reference syndrome in a patient with partial epilepsy

Neuropsychiatry Neuropsychol Behav Neurol. 1998 Apr;11(2):103-5.

Abstract

A 49-year-old man with right temporal lobe epilepsy developed the chronic delusion that his body emitted a foul odor (olfactory reference syndrome). Before the delusional symptoms, he had partial seizures with unpleasant olfactory hallucinations. Subsequently ictal olfactory symptoms abated but a disabling delusional syndrome developed. The only prior case of the olfactory reference syndrome in a patient with epilepsy had a right frontal lesion. The case further supports the association of right hemisphere lesions and delusional disorders.

Publication types

  • Case Reports

MeSH terms

  • Epilepsy, Temporal Lobe / complications*
  • Hallucinations / etiology*
  • Humans
  • Male
  • Middle Aged
  • Neurologic Examination
  • Odorants
  • Olfactory Pathways / physiopathology
  • Sensation Disorders / etiology*
  • Smell*
  • Syndrome