Could trigeminal neuralgia also cause strange sense of smell

Thanks for your question Mike.  Though I was not able to find specific reference to this in our material, some of our members have experienced issue with their sense of smell.  You can read more about the effects of this disease in our Understanding MS content.

All the best, sue

Hi Mike,

I found this cool review on Neuroscience for Kids which provides a clear description of the different cranial nerves and what functions they are responsible for. 

The Olfactory Nerve (cranial nerve I) is responsible for smell.  The Trigeminal Nerve (cranial nerve V) is responsible for muscles of chewing and sensory information of touch and pain from the face and head.

So they are not directly related, but that doesn't mean that a person couldn't be experiencing issues with both cranial nerves at the same time.  Isn't the CNS fascinating?  

I am not a Doctor, just someone with Trigeminal Neuralgia who is also seeking answers.  One of the areas my trigeminal neuralgia sends its shock waves is across my cheek directly into my sinal cavaty and things do have a strange smell as a result.  My taste buds have also been affected.