This study examines the relationships between nutritional status, taste and smell dysfunction, and hedonic pleasure among liver transplant recipients in Türkiye. Using a descriptive cross-sectional design, the researchers evaluated 326 adult liver transplant recipients between January and May 2025 at an organ transplant hospital.
The study was motivated by evidence that chronic liver disease and liver transplantation can impair sensory functions such as taste and smell, potentially contributing to malnutrition and reduced pleasure associated with eating. The authors hypothesized that persistent olfactory and gustatory dysfunction after transplantation may negatively influence nutritional recovery and quality of life.
Researchers used several validated instruments, including the Controlling Nutritional Status Tool (CONUT), Complete Mouth Test (CMT), Connecticut Chemosensory Clinical Research Center test (CCCRC), Food Cravings Questionnaire (FCQ), and Charlson Comorbidity Index (CCI). The CONUT scale measured malnutrition severity, the CMT assessed taste function, CCCRC evaluated smell function, and FCQ measured hedonic pleasure and food cravings.