Abstract
Aim of this retrospective study was to obtain information about the frequency of taste disorders, their most frequent causes, and typical symptoms. A total of 491 out of 4,680 patients (presenting for the first time between 1998 and 2011) exhibited taste disorders (10.5 %). All patients underwent a thorough physical otorhinolaryngological examination including detailed assessment of smell and taste functions. The three most frequent causes of disorders were idiopathic (34 %), posttraumatic (24 %), and postoperative (15 %). Patients with idiopathic and postoperative taste disorders complained mainly about hypogeusia and parageusia; in comparison, patients with posttraumatic taste disorders exhibited a relatively higher degree of partial, local, or complete ageusia. Among patients with phantogeusia and parageusia, 38 % reported salty, and 22 % mixed sensations like bitter–salty or sour–sweet. In approximately 1/3 of this group of patients the cause of dysgeusia is unknown. Twenty-one percent of the patients complained of qualitative rather than quantitative taste problems.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Landis BN, Just T (2009) Schmeckstörungen. In: Hummel T, Welge-Luessen A (eds) Riech- und Schmeckstörungen: Thieme, pp 95–105
Deems DA, Doty RL, Settle RG et al (1991) Smell and taste disorders, a study of 750 patients from the University of Pennsylvania Smell and Taste Center. Arch Otolaryngol Head Neck Surg 117:519–528
Bartoshuk LM (1989) Taste. robust across the age span? Ann N Y Acad Sci 561:65–75
Saito T, Manabe Y, Shibamori Y et al (2001) Long-term follow-up results of electrogustometry and subjective taste disorder after middle ear surgery. Laryngoscope 111:2064–2070
Lloyd S, Meerton L, Di Cuffa R, Lavy J, Graham J (2007) Taste change following cochlear implantation. Cochlear Implants Int 8:203–210
Kveton JF, Bartoshuk LM (1994) The effect of unilateral chorda tympani damage on taste. Laryngoscope 104:25–29
Windfuhr JP, Sack F, Sesterhenn AM, Landis BN, Chen YS (2010) Post-tonsillectomy taste disorders. Eur Arch Otorhinolaryngol 267:289–293
Heiser C, Landis BN, Giger R et al (2010) Taste disturbance following tonsillectomy—a prospective study. Laryngoscope 120:2119–2124
Goins MR, Pitovski DZ (2004) Posttonsillectomy taste distortion: a significant complication. Laryngoscope 114:1206–1213
Welge-Lussen A, Dorig P, Wolfensberger M, Krone F, Hummel T (2011) A study about the frequency of taste disorders. J Neurol 258:386–392
Landis BN, Just T (2010) Taste disorders. An update. Hno 58:650–655
Nocentini U, Giordano A, Castriota-Scanderbeg A, Caltagirone C (2004) Parageusia: an unusual presentation of multiple sclerosis. Eur Neurol 51:123–124
Miller SM, Naylor GJ (1989) Unpleasant taste—a neglected symptom in depression. J Affect Disord 17:291–293
Hausser-Hauw C, Bancaud J (1987) Gustatory hallucinations in epileptic seizures. Electrophysiological, clinical and anatomical correlates. Brain 110(Pt 2):339–359
Nakazato Y, Imai K, Abe T, Tamura N, Shimazu K (2006) Unpleasant sweet taste: a symptom of SIADH caused by lung cancer. J Neurol Neurosurg Psychiatr 77:405–406
Hummel T, Landis BN, Huttenbrink KB (2011) Dysfunction of the chemical senses smell and taste. Laryngorhinootologie 90(Suppl 1):S44–S55
Welge-Luessen A, Hummel T (2008) Praktisches Vorgehen bei Patienten mit Riechstörungen. In: Hummel T, Welge-Luessen A (eds) Riech- und Schmeckstörungen. Thieme, Basel/Dresden, pp 3–10
Hummel T, Sekinger B, Wolf S, Pauli E, Kobal G (1997) “Sniffin sticks”: olfactory performance assessed by the combined testing of odor identification, odor discrimination and olfactory threshold. Chem Senses 22:39–52
Vennemann MM, Hummel T, Berger K (2008) The association between smoking and smell and taste impairment in the general population. J Neurol 255:1121–1126
Landis BN, Welge-Luessen A, Bramerson A et al (2009) “Taste Strips”—a rapid, lateralized, gustatory bedside identification test based on impregnated filter papers. J Neurol 256:242–248
Frasnelli J, Landis BN, Heilmann S et al (2004) Clinical presentation of qualitative olfactory dysfunction. Eur Arch Otorhinolaryngol 261:411–415
Landis B, Konnerth C, Hummel T (2004) A study on the frequency of olfactory dysfunction. Laryngoscope 114:1764–1769
Hoffmann H, Ishii E, Mac Turk R (1998) Age-related changes in the prevalence of smell/taste problems among the United States adult population. Results of the 1994 disability supplement to the National Survey (NHIS). Ann N Y Acad Sci 855:716–722
Landis BN, Hummel T, Hugentobler M, Giger R, Lacroix JS (2003) Ratings of overall olfactory function. Chem Senses 28:691–694
Soter A, Kim J, Jackman A, Tourbier I, Kaul A, Doty RL (2008) Accuracy of self-report in detecting taste dysfunction. Laryngoscope 118:611–617
O`Mahony M, Goldenberg M, Stedmin J, Tourbier I, Alford J (1979) Confusion in the use of the taste adjectives sour and bitter. Chem Senses Flavour 4:301–318
Pilkova L, Novakova M, Pokorny J (1991) Naming and identification of tastes in aqueous solutions. Nahrung 35:999–1002
Laing DG, Segovia C, Fark T et al (2008) Tests for screening olfactory and gustatory function in school-age children. Otolaryngol Head Neck Surg 139:74–82
Tomita H, Horikawa Y (1986) Dissociated taste disorder. Auris Nasus Larynx 13:17–23
Nin T, Umemoto M, Negoro A, Sakagami M (2006) Treatment outcome in patients with taste disturbances. Nihon Jibiinkoka Gakkai Kaiho 109:440–446
Bazarian JJ, Veazie P, Mookerjee S, Lerner EB (2006) Accuracy of mild traumatic brain injury case ascertainment using ICD-9 codes. Acad Emerg Med 13:31–38
Kraus JF, Black MA, Hessol N et al (1984) The incidence of acute brain injury and serious impairment in a defined population. Am J Epidemiol 119:186–201
Servadei F, Antonelli V, Betti L et al (2002) Regional brain injury epidemiology as the basis for planning brain injury treatment. The Romagna (Italy) experience. J Neurosurg Sci 46:111–119
Chiu WT, Yeh KH, Li YC, Gan YH, Chen HY, Hung CC (1997) Traumatic brain injury registry in Taiwan. Neurol Res 19:261–264
Lopez-Jornet P, Camacho-Alonso F, Andujar-Mateos P, Sanchez-Siles M, Gomez-Garcia F (2010) Burning mouth syndrom: update. Med Oral Patol Oral Cir Bucal 15:562–568
Thorstensson B, Hugoson A (1996) Prevalence of some oral complaints and their relation to oral health variables in an adult Swedish population. Acta Odontol Scand 54:257–262
Bartoshuk L, Desnoyers S, Hudson C et al (1987) Tasting on localized areas. Ann N Y Acad Sci 510:166–168
Tomita H, Ikeda M, Okuda Y (1986) Basis and practice of clinical taste examinations. Auris Nasus Larynx 13(Suppl 1):S1–15
Acknowledgments
We would like to thank Bettina Hauswald for her help in diagnosing and counseling the patients; we also are indebted to Elena Flohr for her help with the statistical analyses of the data.
Conflict of interest
The authors declare no conflict of interest.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Fark, T., Hummel, C., Hähner, A. et al. Characteristics of taste disorders. Eur Arch Otorhinolaryngol 270, 1855–1860 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00405-012-2310-2
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00405-012-2310-2