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In this Article

• How common are taste disorders?
• How does our sense of taste work?
• What are the taste disorders?
• What causes taste disorders?
• How are taste disorders diagnosed?
• Are taste disorders serious?
• Can taste disorders be treated?
• What research is being done?
• Patient Comments: Taste Disorders - Experience
• Find a local Ear, Nose, & Throat Doctor in your town
• Taste Disorders Index

The most common taste disorder is phantom taste perception; that is, a lingering, often unpleasant taste even though you have nothing in your mouth. We also can experience a reduced ability to taste sweet, sour, bitter, salty, and umami, a condition called hypogeusia. Some people cannot detect any tastes, which is called ageusia. True taste loss, however, is rare. Most often, people are experiencing a loss of smell instead of a loss of taste.

In other disorders of the chemical senses, an odor, a taste, or a flavor may be distorted. Dysgeusia is a condition in which a foul, salty, rancid, or metallic taste sensation will persist in the mouth. Dysgeusia is sometimes accompanied by burning mouth syndrome, a condition in which a person experiences a painful burning sensation in the mouth. Although it can affect anyone, burning mouth syndrome is most common in middle-aged and older women.

Some people are born with taste disorders, but most develop them after an injury or illness. Among the causes of taste problems are:

• Upper respiratory and middle ear infections



• Radiation therapy for cancers of the head and neck



• Exposure to certain chemicals, such as insecticides and some medications, including some common antibiotics and antihistamines



• Head injury



• Some surgeries to the ear, nose, and throat (e.g., third molar -- wisdom tooth -- extraction and middle ear surgery)



• Poor oral hygiene and dental problems