Tonsillectomy may cause altered tongue sensation in adult patients

Smithard, A.; Cullen, Carmel; Thirlwall, A.; Aldren, C.

doi:10.1017/s0022215108003277

Cited by 7 publications

(10 citation statements)

References 6 publications

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“…These investigators noted that 28% of the tonsillectomy patients had aberrant tongue sensations one day after surgery, with 11% reporting altered taste, and one patient reporting persistent tongue paresthesia. 15…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The studies were as follows; Tomofugi et al, Mueller et al, Stathas et al, Windfuhr et al, Heiser et al, Heiser et al, Kitaya et al 8-14 For electrocautery “hot” tonsillectomy, a diathermy tool is usually used, bipolar or bovie, during dissection or hemostasis. In the study by Smithard et al, 15 both bipolar diathermy and cold steel tonsillectomy were used. Tomita et al 16 did not provide information regarding the type of tonsillectomy (Table 1).…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Taste Dysfunction after Tonsillectomy: A Meta-analysis

Kim

Lee

Yun

et al. 2020

Ann Otol Rhinol Laryngol

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Objectives: We aimed to provide information on the effects of tonsillectomy, in particular, its effects on taste dysfunction; also known as dysgeusia, and provide direction for future research in this area. Methods: We independently searched five databases (PubMed, SCOPUS, Embase, the Web of Science, and the Cochrane database) for related studies published as recently as December 2019. From the included studies, we reviewed the findings on tonsillectomy and taste disturbance through the use of a questionnaire, chemogustometry, and electrogustometry. We analyzed other conditions that were measured in these studies that included; postoperative pain intensity and other morbidities (eg, postoperative bleeding, hemostasis, tongue numbness and zinc, copper, and iron hemoglobin levels measured). Results: Postoperative taste disturbance based on questionnaire (VAS) scores at 14 days (SMD = −0.31 [−0.50, −0.12], P value = .0012) tended to decrease significantly in the post-tonsillectomy group compared to the pre-tonsillectomy group. Patients showed significantly decreased taste sensation after tonsillectomy than in the preoperative test. Postoperative electrogusmetry at 7 days (SMD = 0.60 [0.27, 0.94], P = .0004) tended to increase significantly in the post-tonsillectomy group compared to the pre-tonsillectomy group. Conclusion: Tonsillectomy is a commonly performed surgery, and taste disturbance occurs frequently as a post operative effect. Taste dysfunction is important to patients with regard to their quality of life and the overall effects of taste on their day-to-day life. This study can be a useful meta-analysis of dysgeusia in tonsillectomy.

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Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Taste Dysfunction after Tonsillectomy: A Meta-analysis

Kim

Lee

Yun

et al. 2020

Ann Otol Rhinol Laryngol

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“…In 2009, Smithard et al 35 administered a questionnaire on the day prior to discharge to 104 tonsillectomy patients and 43 appendectomy patients (controls) that inquired about altered post-surgical tongue sensations. The patients were from a district general hospital in England.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The eight studies identified in this literature review 15 , 29 , 30 , 31 , 32 , 33 , 35 , 38 reported a rate of transient taste dysfunction following tonsillectomy as high as 29%–32% ( Table 2 ). Unfortunately, these metrics were not always supported by psychophysical testing (EGM or chemical gustometry), with only five studies providing quantitative taste testing and even fewer reporting on the difference between pre- and post-operative test results.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Post‐tonsillectomy taste dysfunction: Myth or reality?

Soldatova

Doty

2018

World j. otorhinolaryngol.-head neck surg.

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Lingual branches of the glossopharyngeal nerve (CN Ⅸ) are at risk of injury during tonsillectomy due to their proximity to the muscle layer of the palatine tonsillar bed. However, it is unclear how often this common surgery leads to taste disturbances. We conducted a literature search using PubMed, Embase, Cochrane Library, Google Scholar, PsychInfo, and Ovid Medline to evaluate the available literature on post-tonsillectomy taste disorders. Studies denoting self-reported dysfunction, as well as those employing quantitative testing, i.e., chemogustometry and electrogustometry, were identified. Case reports were excluded. Of the 8 original articles that met our inclusion criteria, only 5 employed quantitative taste tests. The highest prevalence of self-reported taste disturbances occurred two weeks after surgery (32%). Two studies reported post-operative chemical gustometry scores consistent with hypogeusia. However, in the two studies that compared pre- and post-tonsillectomy test scores, one found no difference and the other found a significant difference only for the left rear of the tongue 14 days post-op. In the two studies that employed electrogustometry, elevated post-operative thresholds were noted, although only one compared pre- and post-operative thresholds. This study found no significant differences. No study employed a normal control group to assess the influences of repeated testing on the sensory measures. Overall, this review indicates that studies on post-tonsillectomy taste disorders are limited and ambiguous. Future research employing appropriate control groups and taste testing procedures are needed to define the prevalence, duration, and nature of post-tonsillectomy taste disorders.

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“…Tonsillectomy is a painful procedure [7], which requires an average of 14 days off work [8, 9] and has a number of less common but intrusive complications [10] including changes in taste and tongue sensation [11, 12]. Thus, irrespective of its relative merits as a treatment, like all surgical intervention it needs to be weighed carefully against the alternatives.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The NAtional randomised controlled Trial of Tonsillectomy IN Adults (NATTINA): a clinical and cost-effectiveness study: study protocol for a randomised control trial

Rubie

Haighton

O’Hara

et al. 2015

Trials

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BackgroundThe role of tonsillectomy in the management of adult tonsillitis remains uncertain and UK regional variation in tonsillectomy rates persists. Patients, doctors and health policy makers wish to know the costs and benefits of tonsillectomy against conservative management and whether therapy can be better targeted to maximise benefits and minimise risks of surgery, hence maximising cost-effective use of resources. NATTINA incorporates the first attempt to map current NHS referral criteria against other metrics of tonsil disease severity.Methods/designA UK multi-centre, randomised, controlled trial for adults with recurrent tonsillitis to compare the clinical and cost-effectiveness of tonsillectomy versus conservative management.An initial feasibility study comprises qualitative interviews to investigate the practicality of the protocol, including willingness to randomise and be randomised. Approximately 20 otolaryngology staff, 10 GPs and 15 ENT patients will be recruited over 5 months in all 9 proposed main trial participating sites.A 6-month internal pilot will then recruit 72 patients across 6 of the 9 sites. Participants will be adults with recurrent acute tonsillitis referred by a GP to secondary care. Randomisation between tonsillectomy and conservative management will be according to a blocked allocation method in a 1:1 ratio stratified by centre and baseline disease severity.If the pilot is successful, the main trial will recruit a further 528 patients over 18 months in all 9 participating sites. All participants will be followed up for a total of 24 months, throughout which both primary and secondary outcome data will be collected. The primary outcome is the number of sore throat days experienced over the 24-month follow-up. The pilot and main trials include an embedded qualitative process evaluation.DiscussionNATTINA is designed to evaluate the relative effectiveness and efficiency of tonsillectomy versus conservative management in patients with recurrent sore throat who are eligible for surgery. Most adult tonsil disease and surgery has an impact on economically active age groups, with individual and societal costs through loss of earnings and productivity. Avoidance of unnecessary operations and prioritisation of those individuals likely to gain most from tonsillectomy would reduce costs to the NHS and society.Trial registrationISRCTN55284102, Date of Registration: 4 August 2014

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Tonsillectomy may cause altered tongue sensation in adult patients

Cited by 7 publications

References 6 publications

Taste Dysfunction after Tonsillectomy: A Meta-analysis

Taste Dysfunction after Tonsillectomy: A Meta-analysis

Post‐tonsillectomy taste dysfunction: Myth or reality?

The NAtional randomised controlled Trial of Tonsillectomy IN Adults (NATTINA): a clinical and cost-effectiveness study: study protocol for a randomised control trial

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