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OBJECTIVE: To evaluate a novel olfactory battery in a well-characterized cohort of subjects ranging from cognitively healthy to probable Alzheimer's disease (AD).

BACKGROUND: The pathological aggregates of AD accumulate in the olfactory bulb and entorhinal cortex in autopsy specimens of cognitively healthy individuals. Examination of human olfactory function has provided reproducible evidence of odor identification deficits in the prodromal and dementia stages of AD.

DESIGN/METHODS: We deployed a customizable, portable olfactometer to conduct a 12-item odor discrimination, a 20-item odor identification, and a 20-item episodic olfactory percept memory test. The subjects (n = 114) were recruited from the Massachusetts ADRC longitudinal cohort that includes cognitively normal elderly subjects, cognitively impaired subjects who do not reach criteria for a diagnosis of Mild Cognitive Impairment …