Orbital Response Indicates Nasal Pungency: Analysis of Biomechanical Strain on the Skin

Stimulation of the human nasal passage with pungent vapor elicits motor responses in a zone around the eye. This investigation addressed whether quantification of such responses, particularly activity of the orbicularis oculi muscle, could yield a sensitive index of nasal pungency. We placed an arra...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published inChemical senses Vol. 26; no. 8; pp. 1005 - 1013
Main Authors Jalowayski, A. A., Johnson, B. N., Wise, P. M., Schmid-Schonbein, G. W., Cain, W. S.
Format Journal Article Conference Proceeding
LanguageEnglish
Published Oxford Oxford University Press 01.10.2001
Subjects
Adult
Biological and medical sciences
Dose-Response Relationship, Drug
Eye
Eyelids - pathology
Eyelids - physiology
Female
Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology
Humans
Image Processing, Computer-Assisted
Irritants - adverse effects
Male
Middle Aged
Models, Statistical
Nasal Cavity - physiology
Odorants
Olfaction. Taste
Perception
Psychology. Psychoanalysis. Psychiatry
Psychology. Psychophysiology
Skin - pathology
Skin Physiological Phenomena
Smell
Stress, Mechanical
Time Factors
Human
Image analysis
Apnea
Investigation method
Olfaction
Perception
Orbicularis oculi muscle
Experimental study
Odor
Chemical stimulus
Dose activity relation
Online AccessGet full text

Cover

More Information
Summary:Stimulation of the human nasal passage with pungent vapor elicits motor responses in a zone around the eye. This investigation addressed whether quantification of such responses, particularly activity of the orbicularis oculi muscle, could yield a sensitive index of nasal pungency. We placed an array of small, high-contrast targets just beneath the lower eyelid and videotaped their movement to capture deformation of the skin atop the orbicularis oculi during 3 s stimulation with pungent concentrations of ethyl acetate. Eleven subjects participated. Analysis of the movements served to determine mechanical strain, which yielded a single index that we termed 'maximum strain'. This increased with concentration of the vapor and with time during and just after stimulation. Comparison with psychophysical data showed that the strain became evident at concentrations just detectable as pungent. Maximum strain measured on the skin shows promise as an objective index of pungency.
Bibliography:ObjectType-Article-2
SourceType-Scholarly Journals-1
ObjectType-Feature-1
content type line 23
ObjectType-Article-1
ObjectType-Feature-2
ISSN:0379-864X
1464-3553
DOI:10.1093/chemse/26.8.1005