Chorda tympani injury: operative findings and postoperative symptoms.

Objective: This study aims to assess whether operative findings of chorda tympani nerve (CTN) trauma correlate with postoperative symptoms.

Methods: A prospective study was conducted over 2 years on 140 middle ear operations analyzing taste disturbances. The operations were subdivided into myringoplasty/tympanoplasty (56 cases), mastoidectomy (64 cases), and tympanotomy (20 cases).

Results: Twenty-one (15%) patients reported taste disturbance. Altered taste was most reported (n=15, 71%) with loss of taste reported by 29% (n=6). Symptoms were most observed in the tympanotomy group (45%). Stretching of the CTN was associated with more symptoms than nerve transection. Recovery was complete in 76% (n=16) of the symptomatic cases by 12 months.

Conclusions: Patients who undergo middle ear surgery should be thoroughly counseled with respect to CTN injury and symptoms regardless of the type of damage to the nerve. Conclusions: This study highlights the high incidence of postoperative alterations in taste after middle ear surgery, especially in non-diseased ears, and that CTN transection results in fewer symptoms than CTN stretching.