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Gustatory function in chronic inflammatory middle ear diseases
B N Landis1, D Beutner, J Frasnelli
1Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Smell and Taste Clinic, University of Dresden Medical School, Dresden, Germany. Basile.Landis@hcuge.ch
Hypothesis:
Changes of gustatory function after ear surgery have been studied extensively. However, little is known on the influence of repeated/chronic inflammation within the middle ear on taste.
Study Design:
Prospective study.
Materials And Methods:
Forty-six patients suffering from either cholesteatoma (n = 25) or chronic otitis media mesotympanalis (n = 21) received quantitative gustatory tests. None of these patients had been operated on before these investigations.
Results:
Side by side comparison showed a significantly lower taste function on the anterior two thirds of the tongue ipsilateral to the site of inflammation, regardless of the diagnosis. Further analyses exhibited a trend toward greater impairment in relation to the severity of the inflammatory process.
Conclusion:
These data are proof that taste function changes in relation to chronic middle ear diseases. It further shows that many of these alterations go unnoticed by the patients.
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