01 Jul Wisdom teeth removal is associated with long-term improvement in taste
MedicalResearch.com interview with:
Danish Kim
Dane Kim, Dental Student
University of Pennsylvania School of Dental Medicine
MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study?
Answer: This large study was inspired, in part, by a previous publication, Gustatory Function After Third Molar Extraction (Shafer et al. 1999), which examined the effect of third molar extractions on human gustatory function. Their work was based on more severe transplants and only followed patients up to six months after surgery. Studies examining gustatory function over a longer period of time, i.e. beyond six months after surgery, were non-existent.
The Smell and Taste Center of Penn Medicine, which is the only center of its type in the United States, has a large unique database of patients who have been thoroughly tested for both smell and taste function. This gave us the opportunity to compare data from hundreds of people who had previously had third molar extractions with those who had not. Importantly, the extracts had appeared years before the taste test.
MedicalResearch.com: What are the main findings?
Answer: To our surprise, we found that, even after controlling for factors such as age, gender, educational attainment, and medical reason for seeking evaluation at the Center, that the group who had had their wisdom teeth removed years before the taste test had better performance. peers who have never had such removal. Our study also confirmed that women outperform men in their ability to taste sweet, sour, salty and bitter compounds and that aging has a reduced effect on taste.
MedicalResearch.com: What should readers take away from your report?
Answer: Our study shows, for the first time, that removal of third molars can indeed lead to long-term improvement in the ability to taste basic tastes, i.e. sweet, sour, bitter and salty solutions, in some individuals. Although, in rare cases, wisdom tooth extraction may result in short-term reductions in taste sensitivity, such reductions usually resolve over time. What surprised us is that such an analysis can actually lead to better test scores than people who have not had third molar extractions. We emphasize, however, that this improvement is very modest and probably not recognized by the person who has had a wisdom tooth removed. Moreover, this effect is not present in everyone.
MedicalResearch.com: What recommendations do you have for future research as a result of this work?
Answer: As our study is cross-sectional, longitudinal studies with more dental information (eg, degree of impaction/eruption, tooth-to-second molar relationship, radiographic signs of proximity to the lower alveolar canal, degree of bone removal, etc.) are needed to establish more firmly the causality between third molar extractions and long-term taste improvement. Assuming our findings are supported by other studies, this research may facilitate a better understanding of agents that could be established in the future to improve nerve function in general.
Reference:
Shafer DM. et al. 1999. Gustatory function after third molar extraction. Oral Surg Oral Med Oral Pathol Oral Radiol Endod. 87(4): 419-28
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Last updated on 1 July 2021 by Marie Benz MD FAAD
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