Definition of Aguesia

Ageusia (pronounced ay-GOO-see-uh) is the loss of taste functions of the tongue, particularly the inability to detect sweetness, sourness, bitterness, saltiness, and umami (the taste of monosodium glutamate). It is sometimes confused for anosmia - a loss of the sense of smell. Because the tongue can only indicate texture and differentiate between sweet, sour, bitter, salty, and umami most of what is perceived as the sense of taste is actually derived from smell. True aguesia is relatively rare compared to the milder forms of taste loss: hypogeusia and dysgeusia. Hypogeusia represents a partial loss of taste whereas dysgeusia denotes a distortion or alteration of taste.