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Olfactory and other sensory impairments in Alzheimer disease
Murphy C.. Nature reviews. Neurology, 2019-01-01
Topic: Amyloid, tau and blood-test diagnosis
Plain-language summary
The vast increase in Alzheimer disease (AD) worldwide has grave implications for individuals, family support systems and the health-care systems that will attempt to cope with the disease. Early markers of the disease are essential for efficient selection of clinical trial participants for drug development and for timely treatment once an intervention becomes available. There is avid interest in noninvasive, inexpensive markers that have the potential to identify prodromal AD. This Review considers sensory impairments that have the potential to serve as early indicators of AD, with a focus on olfaction, hearing and vision. Current evidence regarding the potential markers of AD in each modality is examined, with a particular emphasis on olfaction and current findings that olfactory function is associated with prodromal AD. Research suggests that olfactory impairment is associated with other markers that signal the emergence of prodromal AD. Auditory impairment is associated with dementia in epidemiological studies and visual system deficits have been reported in AD; however, the emergence of these deficits in prodromal AD is unclear. Further research is necessary to address the relative sensitivity and specificity of olfactory, auditory and visual measures for the detection of prodromal AD.
What this study adds
Evidence grade: Low
This is a narrative review. This review examines whether problems with smell, hearing and vision could serve as early signs of Alzheimer's disease, noting that smell impairment is associated with prodromal Alzheimer's. The authors say more research is needed on how well these measures detect early disease, and no treatment or prevention is reported.
Taken from this record’s own fields, not from reading the paper. The grade is assigned from the abstract’s wording; what that means.
Cite this study APA, Vancouver, BibTeX · download .bib or .ris
APA 7th
Murphy, C. (2019). Olfactory and other sensory impairments in Alzheimer disease. Nature reviews. Neurology. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41582-018-0097-5
Vancouver
Murphy C. Olfactory and other sensory impairments in Alzheimer disease. Nature reviews. Neurology. 2019. doi:10.1038/s41582-018-0097-5. PMID: 30532084.
BibTeX
@article{murphy2019-30532084,
author = {Murphy, C.},
title = {{Olfactory and other sensory impairments in Alzheimer disease}},
journal = {Nature reviews. Neurology},
year = {2019},
doi = {10.1038/s41582-018-0097-5},
pmid = {30532084},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1038/s41582-018-0097-5}
}
Built from the record alzhub holds for this paper, not looked up. Volume, issue and page numbers are not held in the record. Check the citation against the original before you use it.
Key findings
- Current evidence regarding the potential markers of AD in each modality is examined, with a particular emphasis on olfaction and current findings that olfactory function is associated with prodromal AD.
- Research suggests that olfactory impairment is associated with other markers that signal the emergence of prodromal AD.
- Auditory impairment is associated with dementia in epidemiological studies and visual system deficits have been reported in AD; however, the emergence of these deficits in prodromal AD is unclear.
Why it matters
This review examines whether problems with smell, hearing and vision could serve as early signs of Alzheimer's disease, noting that smell impairment is associated with prodromal Alzheimer's. The authors say more research is needed on how well these measures detect early disease, and no treatment or prevention is reported.
New to this subject? Start with our plain-English guide: Getting a diagnosis →
Study details
- Evidence strengthLow
How this study scored 50/100
Published in a peer-reviewed journal. Scored zero for study design, sample size, effect reported, studied in people and randomized / blinded because the record does not state it.
| Component | Points | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Journal tier | 7 / 10 | Tier 3 — peer-reviewed journal (Nature reviews. Neurology) |
| Journal's citation record | 3 / 4 | Nature Reviews Neurology: journal h-index 269 (OpenAlex, 2026-10-29) |
| Study design | 0 / 12 | No study design recorded — scores zero, not guessed (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Strength of evidence | 1 / 5 | Rated “low” in our summary |
| Peer-review validation | 10 / 10 | Peer-reviewed. Published as an article in a named peer-reviewed journal. |
| How recent | 2 / 5 | 2019 — within 10 year(s) of the newest study here |
| Sample size | 0 / 4 | Participant count not stated — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Effect reported | 0 / 3 | No effect size reported — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Studied in people | 0 / 3 | Not stated whether this was studied in people — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Randomized / blinded | 0 / 2 | No randomization or blinding stated — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Times cited | 6 / 7 | Cited 430 times (OpenAlex, 2026-10-10) |
| Citations per year | 4 / 5 | 47.8 citations a year over 9 year(s) since 2019 |
| Impact for its field and year | 3 / 6 | Cited 4.5× the average for papers of its field and year (OpenAlex FWCI) |
| Cited by studies here | 3 / 6 | Cited by 10 other studies in this library |
| Still being cited | 4 / 4 | Cited 209 times in 2024–2026 (2026 still in progress; OpenAlex) |
| Senior author's track record | 2 / 4 | Last-listed author Claire Murphy: h-index 44 (OpenAlex, whole career) |
| Institution's track record | 2 / 3 | University of California San Diego: institution h-index 1,852 (OpenAlex) |
| Multicenter collaboration | 1 / 3 | OpenAlex lists 2 institution(s) in 1 country |
| Indexed in PubMed | 2 / 2 | Indexed in PubMed (PMID 30532084) |
| Free to read | 0 / 2 | Behind a paywall — scores zero |
| Total | 50 / 100 | — |
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