| [ Summary ] |
Taste disorders in dialysis patient have a relation to plasma zinc concentrations. For this reason, administering zinc may restore the patient's sense of taste.
Patients, who use antihypertensive agents such as inhibitors of angiotensin converting enzyme (ACEI), tend to have taste disorders. This is due to chelating action of zinc by the thiol group of ACEI. A zinc deficiencient diet causes taste disorders in rats. The turnover time by rat taste buds became significantly longer. After the taste disorder rat group fed zinc-normal foods again, their sense of taste and the turnover time for their taste buds also recovered to normal levels. Taste and RBP have a direct correlation, and plasma zinc values as well as RBP have the positive correlations also. This demonstrates the necessity for treating dialysis patients to prevent taste disorders by having meals rich in zinc. |