Evaluation of electrogustometry and the filter paper disc method for taste assessment

Abstract

Conclusion: The results indicate that electrogustometry and the filter paper disc method are reliable methods to measure taste with a high degree of reproducibility. Objectives: To thoroughly evaluate the reliability of electrogustometry and the filter paper disc method for taste assessments. Methods: Thirty-nine healthy test persons without any history of chronic middle ear disease, aged between 27 and 62 years, were recruited. In all, 772 electrogustometry and 30 filter paper disc assessments were made. A nerve decay test was performed, with measures taken before and after eating sweet, sour, bitter, salt, a mild or spicy meal, after smoking, and after taking Swedish tobacco snuff (‘snus’), as well as before and after local anesthesia of the tongue. Measurements were performed on 5 consecutive days and repeatedly during 1 day. The correlation between electrogustometry and the filter paper disc method was also studied. Results: The results indicate that electrogustometry and the filter paper disc method are reliable methods to measure taste with a high degree of reproducibility. The only actions causing significant changes in the electrogustometry readings were eating bitter a substance and having local anesthesia of the tongue. The correlation between the methods was statistically significant except for the bitter flavor, where the correlation was just below the level of significance.

Keywords::

• Chorda tympani
• ear disease
• ear surgery

Acknowledgments

The authors wish to thank Dr Hidemi Miyazaki, ORL Department, Tokyo Kyosai Hospital, Tokyo, for invaluable advice regarding FPD methodology. This study was supported by the Center for Clinical Research, County Council Västmanland and Uppsala University,Västerås, Sweden and Stiftelsen Acta Oto-Laryngologica, Sweden.

Declaration of interest: The authors report no conflicts of interest. The authors alone are responsible for the content and writing of the paper.