Many types of sense loss occur due to a dysfunctional sensation process, whether it be ineffective receptors, nerve damage, or cerebral impairment.
Because the eye is a delicate and complex organ, even a slight injury may have a temporary or permanent effect on eyesight.
[1] Primary causes of hearing loss due to an impaired sensory system include long-term exposure to environmental noise, which can damage the mechanoreceptors responsible for receiving sound vibrations, as well as multiple diseases, such as CMV or meningitis, which damage the cochlea and auditory nerve, respectively.
Hearing loss may be very mild, resulting in minor difficulties with conversation, or as severe as complete deafness.
The lack of the sense of smell at birth, usually due to genetic factors, is referred to as congenital anosmia.
The sensory receptors cover the skin and epithelia, skeletal muscles, bones and joints, internal organs, and the cardiovascular system.
In medicine, the colloquial term "touch" is usually replaced with "somatic senses" to better reflect the variety of mechanisms involved.
Insensitivity to somatosensory stimuli, such as heat, cold, touch, and pain, are most commonly a result of a more general physical impairment associated with paralysis.
[5] Sensory loss can occur due to a minor nick or lesion on the spinal cord which creates a problem within the neurosystem.
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.
Damage may be due to neurological disorders, such as Bell’s palsy or multiple sclerosis, as well as infectious diseases such as meningoencephalopathy.
Other causes include a vitamin B deficiency, as well as taste bud death due to acidic/spicy foods, radiation, and/or tobacco use.
Thus, sensory loss, the inability to communicate, and poor psychosocial functioning reduces quality of life and well-being.