Recognition of illness/condition by smell?

[Misstika]

Hello,

I'm a current LPN student. I'm currently in Med-Surg and trying to remember common signs and symptoms of common conditions. I know my question might sound weird, but while studying, I was wondering...are there alot of conditions that can be recognized by a smell? Diabetic Ketoacidosis has the fruity or acetone smell as a sign and with wounds you can sometimes smell infections. Just was wondering are there other conditions that has specific smells as a symptom?

Thanks

[saskrn]

Perforated bowel.

[missmollie, ADN, BSN, RN]

pseudomonas. If you have a patient with a trach and it smells like yeast, that's what you've got. The doctor's are a little hard pressed to believe the nurses, but I haven't been wrong yet.

[missmollie, ADN, BSN, RN]

Head and neck cancers have a peculiar odor. Hard to describe, it just a very unpleasant odor. After caring for a couple of people with this type of cancer, we could walk past a room and ID the odor.

I had one patient with mouth and throat cancer, and that smell has not left me.

[Dodongo, APRN, NP]

Fetor hepaticas and uremic fetor are probably the most classic examples.

[DnCali]

Maple syrup urine disease...I actually took care of babies with this very rare syndrome. It is true the urine smelled sweet!

[BostonFNP, APRN]

Strep throat can be added to the list.

[hppygr8ful, ASN, RN, EMT-I]

Sort of off topic, but I grew up on a subsistence farm and we had a foal that was basically suffering from failure to thrive. Not nursing, not gaining weight, looked like hell and the neighbor who was Amish walked into our barn one day took a deep breath and said "Somebody has a yeast infection!"

Hppy

[Bellarn58]

When I worked Pediatrics I could identify Rotoviris by the smell.

[CelticGoddess, BSN, RN]

Strep throat can be added to the list.

What do you think it smells like? Mothballs? I have smelled that smell (and tasted it) when I had a strep infection. I have also heard sinus infections can smell like mothballs.

[Nativejenny]

Cliff for sure, no mistaking it.

[sarose611]

Lots of bacterial infections have distintive smell. pseudomonas always drove me nuts. strep, both in wounds and on the breath with strep throat. As previously noted, yeast. This is an important diagnostic tool. We wete taught it, and used it a lot before such dependance on lab results.

[katgross57]

I am a school nurse and frequently have kids complanning with sore throat. I can smell strep a mile away. It smells like rancid meat. Even though nurses can't diagnose, I usually recommend a doctor's visit for any student with even mild redness and the "Step smell" and 9 times out of 10, I'm correct.