I had this surgery 3 weeks ago. It may be early days as my surgeon has said but i have numbness up the right side of my tongue (had the op on the right ear) and my tast buds are out of whack, i cannot taste things properly. My ear at the top is also numb all th eway round almost to my ear lobe. The surgeon said this is t be expected as he has made a large incision and there will be need of some nerve repair. But its driving me nuts, its horrible.