Stapes surgery linked to short and long-term taste disturbances

Based on the study, the researchers suggest that prospective patients should be continued to be counselled by surgeons regarding the risks of both prolonged- and short-term taste disturbances.

Stapedectomy is a surgery performed to treat hearing loss caused by otosclerosis. The condition affects hearing by damaging a tiny U-shaped bone in the middle ear called the stape. Stape aids in hearing by sending sound waves from the middle ear to the inner ear. In stapedectomy, the damaged stape is replaced with an artificial device.

Iatrogenic injury to the chorda tympani is a recognized but potentially underestimated consequence of stapes surgery. Daniel H. Coelho and colleagues aimed to review the current literature to determine these patients' prognosis and incidence of taste disturbances.

For this purpose, the researchers searched the online databases according to the PRISMA (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses). For all included studies, the researchers performed a systematic review; for those with comparable methodology and patient populations, they used meta-analysis using a random-effects model. Patients with a collection of prospective data, including preoperative data, were further categorized by method into "subjective" and "objective" assessments of taste dysfunction.

The authors reported the following findings:

• The initial search yielded 2,959 articles screened per inclusion and exclusion criteria.
• After removing duplicates, the researchers identified seven studies, representing 173 patients with subjective testing (all seven studies) and 146 with objective testing (five studies).
• 46.2% of the patients noted a taste disturbance at early follow-up, whereas 15.0% noted long-term problems.
• Objective methodology and result reporting were heterogenous and not amenable to pooled meta-analysis for all studies included.

The researchers concluded, "changes in taste occur relatively frequently the following stapedectomy." They further add that "surgeons should continue to provide counselling to prospective patients about the risks of both short- and long-term taste disturbances."

Reference:

Coelho, Daniel H.*; Lee, Seong*; Yang, Edward*; Carli, Matthew†. Subjective and Objective Taste Change After Stapes Surgery Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. Otology & Neurotology: November 14, 2022 - Volume - Issue - 10.1097/MAO.0000000000003750 DOI: 10.1097/MAO.0000000000003750