Bad smell due to head injury?

[vvraovattikuti2004]

My sister(age 43 years) met with an accident on nov 14th and she got an head injury. she got a contusion on the right frontal region and a fracture on the left temporal region. she gradually recovered from the contusion and fracture. From  after 1 and 1/2 half month ,she is suffering with perverted senses of smell ie whatever may be the food she will have, she will get bad smell or else she can't smell anything.
does this lead to any future problems?  
can you prescribe any medicines?
please do reply immediately

[Neuro Forum]

Thanks for using the forum. I am happy to address your questions, and my answer will be based on the information you provided here. Please make sure you recognize that this forum is for educational purposes only, and it does not substitute for a formal office visit with your doctor.

Without the ability to examine your sister and obtain a history, I can not tell you what the exact cause of her symptoms is. However I will try to provide you with some useful information.

With traumatic brain injury such as the one that occurred, damage to the frontal lobes can lead to various symptoms such as changes in personality changes, depression, memory problems, and others. The olfactory cortex, or the part of the brain involved in smelling, is in the bottom part of the frontal lobe, and the olfactory nerve (which runs to the nose from the base of the brain) is frequently fractured with head trauma. Damage to this nerve often leads to abnormal taste. This is not often reversible, but does improve with time. If the abnormal taste occurs intermittently without triggers (such as eating), it is important to exclude seizures as a cause, as some seizures can present with gustatory hallucinations.

Evaluation by a neurologist is recommended. Exclusion of other causes of bad smell/taste such as ENT cases may also be of benefit.

Thank you for this opportunity to answer your questions, I hope you find the information I have provided useful, good luck.

[vvraovattikuti2004]

Thank you very much Lama Chahine! That was very helpful.

We have consulted Neurologist and he said that, may be in the initial days, the patient might not have noticed the loss of ability to smell. But once she recovered from the bruises, in the process of recovery from damage to Olfactory nerves, these bad smells surfaced and have been noticed. He added, to our relief, that this bad smell will subside slowly and she'll regain the olfactory abilities. He also said that, in her final state, she might not have the same able olfactory senses she once had.