Antibiotics and Anosmia

    I have had several persons contact me and ask if I knew whether or not the antibiotic that they took could cause anosmia. My standard response has been that I am aware of no research establishing a causal link between antibiotic use and loss of the sense of smell. I have suggested that it might be the illness for which the antibiotic was prescribed that caused the anosmia, not the antibiotic causing the anosmia. This 2018 article in the World Journal of Otorhinolaryngology - Head and Neck Surgery indicates that the use of antibiotics in unlikely to cause anosmia and may, in fact, help prevent anosmia after a bacterial infection.