Insert Figure 1 and Table 4
Comparison of functional data between the treatment and no-treatment group showed no significant differences in activation areas before olfactory training, after performing a two-sample T-test. After the intervention, fMRI showed an increased amount of activating areas in the treatment group in comparison with the no-treatment group. Nonetheless, no significant differences were determined. Although no differences were found in the prior analysis, statistical significance was achieved when we compared the activation areas after olfactory training with the activation areas before treatment in the intervention group, using each patient as its own control. Before training, only five cluster areas activated. In contrast, after training, nine cluster areas activated in the treatment group, and one big voxel cluster in the cerebellum area (Table 5).
All patients showed an activation of the trigeminal related areas, like the precentral gyrus, brainstem, insula, and pars triangularis on their first fMRI. The activation of the areas described beforehand could suggest trigeminal pathway indemnity.