1993 Volume 86 Issue 4 Pages 515-522
Endoscopic and roentgenographic studies were done to clarify the significance of catheter insufflation as a tubal ventilatory test. These studies showed that passive opening pressure by catheter insuffiation indicates the condition of the Eustachian tube except the pharyngeal part, which is thought to be easily affected by inflammatory or allergic changes in the nasal or paranasal cavity. On the other hand, passive opening pressures of the Valsalva maneuver and inflation-deflation tests indicate the condition of the whole Eustachian tube when the tube is insuffiated from the pharynx to the middle ear or in the reverse direction. A study in which these different passive opening pressure tests were applied to 10 ears with traumatic eardrum perforation, indicated that a comparison of the results of these different tests can reveal the condition of the Eustachian tube, especially organic change in the pharyngeal part, more clearly than can each individual test by itself.
