부산대학교 도서관

The aim of the study was to compare the gustatory function between men and age-matched women in Korean subjects.Subjects and Method Healthy non-smoking volunteers without smell and taste disorders were investigated. Thirty nine men and 39 age-matched women were evaluated for gustatory function. Whole mouth taste test was performed with successive solutions of sucrose, sodium chloride, citric acid, and quinine hydrochloride. The electrical taste thresholds were measured using an electrogustometer for the 4 different sites in the oral cavity, i.e., both sides of anterior and posterior tongue. Results Female subjects had lower mean values of detection and recognition thresholds for all the 4 tastes than male subjects, although these results did not reach statistical significance except for the detection threshold for salt and the recognition threshold for quinine. In electrogustometry, thresholds were significantly higher for men in the posterior tongue of glossopharyngeal nerve area than women. Conclusion Men had higher taste threshold than age-matched women. For additional information on the effects of gender and aging on taste thresholds, further studies including a large number of well-controlled subjects are essential.