San Francisco/Oakland Bay Bridge Welder Study: olfactory function.

Background: The sense of smell can be damaged by airborne xenobiotics, including aerosolized heavy metals, reflecting the direct exposure of its receptors to the outside environment.

Objectives: To determine whether professional welders working in confined spaces exhibit olfactory dysfunction. To determine whether such dysfunction, if present, is related to indices of metal exposure associated with welding, as well as measures of neurologic and neuropsychological function.