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Dr. Andrew Rynne

Family Physician

Exp 50 years

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Smell Of Smoke After Taking Multaq. Difficulty Staying Asleep. Normal?

My husband started taking the prescription medication Multaq a few weeks ago. Ever since he started taking it, he has complained of a constant smell of smoke, much like what you would smell if someone around you was smoking a cigarette. No one smokes, and he isn't around cigarette smoke at all. Also, he has said that this smell has caused him to take very shallow breaths, and he now has trouble staying asleep. Is the smoke smell normal with this medication, or is there another explanation that may cause concern?
posted on Wed, 5 Jun 2013
Twitter Wed, 5 Jun 2013 Answered on
Twitter Thu, 6 Jun 2013 Last reviewed on
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Internal Medicine Specialist,  's  Response
Hi,
Welcome to Healthcaremagic,
I have gone through history of your husband and he is taking drug Dronedarone which is antiarrhythmic agent and this symptom of smell of smoke unlikely due to drug. But you should report to treating Physician and other possible causes should be searched for.

Dysosmia Olfactory hallucinations lasting more than a few minutes to several hours are due to a disturbance of the smell system in the nose, head and nose injury, viral damage to the smell system after a bad cold, chronic recurrent sinus infections and allergy, and nasal polyps and tumors.

If the smell of smoke occurs suddenly and continues for less than a few minutes, the site of origin is likely the smell region of the inner temporal lobe of the brain it could be seizure from brain or stroke,tumour so MRI of brain and EEG are required and consultation with ENT Surgeon and Neurologist is warranted.

Hope this helps
Good Luck.
Take care.
Dr.Akhilesh Dubey M.D.
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Smell Of Smoke After Taking Multaq. Difficulty Staying Asleep. Normal?

Hi, Welcome to Healthcaremagic, I have gone through history of your husband and he is taking drug Dronedarone which is antiarrhythmic agent and this symptom of smell of smoke unlikely due to drug. But you should report to treating Physician and other possible causes should be searched for. Dysosmia Olfactory hallucinations lasting more than a few minutes to several hours are due to a disturbance of the smell system in the nose, head and nose injury, viral damage to the smell system after a bad cold, chronic recurrent sinus infections and allergy, and nasal polyps and tumors. If the smell of smoke occurs suddenly and continues for less than a few minutes, the site of origin is likely the smell region of the inner temporal lobe of the brain it could be seizure from brain or stroke,tumour so MRI of brain and EEG are required and consultation with ENT Surgeon and Neurologist is warranted. Hope this helps Good Luck. Take care. Dr.Akhilesh Dubey M.D.