title: Characteristics of taste disorders.
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.
authors.affiliation: Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Smell and Taste Clinic, Technical University of Dresden Medical School, Fetscherstrasse 74, 01307 Dresden, Germany.
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Fark
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Hummel
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Hähner
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Nin
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Hummel
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D002648:Child; D005260:Female; D005858:Germany / Q000453:epidemiology; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012307:Risk Factors; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D013651:Taste Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology*