Description: Paediatric olfactory dysfunction affects quality of life\, nutritio n\, and safety\, yet standardised assessment remains uncommon in clinical practice. This hands-on instructional course equips ENT surgeons with an e vidence-based\, time-efficient approach to paediatric smell and taste eval uation that implementable across diverse settings. Through structured demo nstration and interactive exercises\, participants will learn a stepwise a ssessment protocol\, practical application of validated child-friendly tes ts\, and principles of olfactory rehabilitation. Emphasis is placed on cre ating AI-ready data capture systems and adapting protocols for resource-co nstrained environments.
Outcome Objectives: After this session\, attendees will be able to:
Take a focused chem osensory history for children and caregivers
Examine children using age-appropriate bedside smel l screening techniques
Implement a validated paediatric odour identification test with correct s coring and interpretation
Consider adapting olfactory test panels in cultural context while main taining psychometric validity
Design age-appropriate olfactory training protocols
Apply a minimal data capture templat e suitable for local audit and future multicentre AI-enabled research
< /li>Learning Objectives and Context (2 minutes) –Clarify session goals\, emphasise clinical applicabil ity\, and discuss evidence for chemosensory assessment improving diagnosis of underlying systemic and neurological conditions.
Module 1: Focused Hist ory and Examination (2 minutes) – demonstration of focused hist ory and brief nasal examination incorporating simple bedside smell screeni ng. Red-flag identification for concerning pathology requiring further inv estigation.
Module 2: Practical Psychophysical Testing (20 minutes) – Hands-on demonstration of the U-Sniff paediatric odour identificatio n test with normative interpretation by age group. Discussion of cultural adaptation principles. Paired exercise: participants interpret two sample profiles using provided scoring guides. Troubleshooting for short attentio n spans\, cognitive differences\, and neurodevelopmental disorders.
Module 3: Management\, Rehabilitation\, and Data Systems (5 minutes) – Evidence-based overview of paediatric olfactory training protocols\, safe ty counselling checklist covering fire/gas detection\, food storage\, and school communication. Introduction to minimal dataset template capturing e ssential variables for AI-ready analysis enabling future multicentre predi ctive modelling.
Wrap-Up\, Q&\;A\, and Resources (2 minutes) – Faculty summarise the "30-minute clinic pathway": focused history → brief exam → simple test → rehabilitation plan → structured data cap ture. Rapid Q&\;A addressing common implementation barriers. Distributi on of downloadable resources via QR code. Invitation to SMEL (Sheffield ch eMosensory Exploration Laboratory) for collaborative research opportunitie s.
Whitcroft KL et al. Position paper on olfactory dysfunction: 20 23. Rhinology. 2023 Oct 1\;61(33):1-108. doi: 10.4193/Rhin22.483.
2. \; \; \; Whitc roft KL et al. International clinical assessment of smell: An internationa l\, cross-sectional survey of current practice in the assessment of olfact ion. Clin Otolaryngol. 2024 Mar\;49(2):220-234. doi: 10.1111/coa.14123.
Fahmy M\, Whitc roft K. Psychophysical Testing in Chemosensory Disorders. Curr Otorhinolar yngol Rep. 2022\;10(4):393-404. doi: 10.1007/s40136-022-00429-y.
Spencer GM\, Karim K\, Coyle P\ , Bhargava EK\, Whitcroft KL. Olfactory dysfunction in CHARGE syndrome: a systematic review of prevalence\, assessment methods\, and clinical correl ates. Rhinology. 2025 Nov 28. doi: 10.4193/Rhin25.391.