Changes of taste perception after stapes surgery: a prospective cohort study

Purpose Taste perception is often affected after stapes surgery despite effort to preserve chorda tympani nerve. The aim was to examine changes of particular taste qualities and their recovery after operation of otosclerosis. Materials and methods Taste function was prospectively investigated with a questionnaire and a taste strip test (TST) preoperatively, 3–5 days and 1 year after stapes surgery with the preservation of CTN. Results In the early postoperative examination, 34/42 patients had a lower TST score, 7/42 decrease of taste in the questionnaire. One year after surgery, 11/42 patients had a lower TST score, 1/42 patients decrease of taste in the questionnaire. The most pronounced decrease in the TST score was in sweet (− 1.76 points, p