Sniffing Out

Researchers at the Weizmann Institute in Israel, have established that people with severe brain injuries who respond to odours (such as fish and shampoo) have a better prognosis for returning to consciousness and living for at least a further 3 years than counterparts showing no sign of odour detection (https://www.theguardian.com/science/2020/apr/29/responding-to-smell-good-sign-in-unconscious-patients-scientists-find). The result is a simple and cheap test to evaluate the chances of recovery in people with minimal or no consciousness.