Short-Term Evaluation of Gustatory Changes After Surgical Removal of Mandibular Third Molar—A Prospective Randomized Control Trial

Abstract

The present study was carried out to prospectively determine the incidence and severity of suprathreshold taste changes after surgical removal of mandibular third molars. Sixty patients who required removal of impacted third molars were included in the study. Based on the Winter criteria of angulation of impacted mandibular third molars, 15 patients each with mesioangular, distoangular, horizontal, and vertical impacted third molars were selected. The chemo-gustometry chart in pentagon scheme was used to represent the results of gustometry and to establish a correlation between the difficulty index of impacted third molar removal and the incidence of gustatory changes. All patients underwent spatial taste testing preoperatively and 1week postoperatively. The highest incidence of taste changes was noted in category 3 (difficulty score, 7 to 8) and mostly for distoangular and vertically impacted teeth. In their extensive patient analysis of 4 different taste sensations, the authors found that suprathreshold taste changes do occur after surgical removal of an impacted mandibular third molar, with a high difficulty index score indicating the highest prevalence for altered taste sensations for distoangular and vertical impactions.