TasTY: Development and evaluation of a taste test for quantifying taste sensitivity among preschool children—test–retest reliability, application, and comparison between children with and without prior SARS-CoV-2 infection

Abstract Taste dysfunction gained attention during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic; however, validated objective tests for preschool children remain limited. We aimed to develop a feasible, reliable test quantifying taste sensitivity among children aged 3–6 years and to compare performance between children with and without prior SARS-CoV-2 infection. We included 68 symptom-free children (median age 5.1 years; interquartile range (IQR) 3.9–5.9): 36 without known SARS-CoV-2 infection (control group, CG) and 32 with confirmed prior infection (SARS-CoV-2 infection group, C19-G), tested 79 days after infection (median; IQR 56–112). Children completed a self-developed Taste Test for Young Children (TasTY), a double-blind, playful two-alternative forced-choice test with 10 samples in randomized order (sweet, sour, and salty at three concentrations each; water served as a control). Twenty controls were retested a median of 62 days later (IQR 38–64). Outcomes were total score (0–10), feasibility, task comprehension, and test–retest reliability, assessed using the intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC), standard error of measurement (SEM), and smallest real difference (SRD). Feasibility was high (3% dropout), and 89.4% correctly classified water. Total score test–retest reliability was good (ICC = 0.73; pooled SEM = 0.76; SRD = 2.11). Total scores were similar between CG and C19-G (8.37 ± 1.5 vs. 8.19 ± 1.5; p = 0.63). Descriptively, three-year-olds ( n = 17) had lower, more variable scores. Conclusion : TasTY provides an age-appropriate, reliable, objective method for quantifying taste sensitivity among preschoolers, supporting standardized group comparisons and longitudinal assessment. What is Known: • COVID-19 increased awareness of taste dysfunction; however, evidence among young children relies mainly on surveys and parental reports. • Objective taste tests for preschool children remain limited. What is New: • TasTY is a feasible, standardized, and objective test for quantifying taste sensitivity among children aged 3–6 years and goes beyond parental and subjective reports. • Its standardized 0–10 score showed good test–retest reliability and may support group comparisons and longitudinal assessment of preschool children with taste-related conditions.