航空に関する耳管機能検査について

抄録

Dysfunction of the Eustachian tube is recognized as the direct case of middle ear injury due to aviation. Accurate test of the function of the Eustachian tube is therefore required to ascetain the cause of and to discover preventive measures for this injury. A review of old and current methods used to test the Eustachian tube function is given, and the inadequacy of methods usually employed in clinical practice is pointed out. In ther words, although determination of the grade of passive opening of the Eustachian tube is of significance in clinical practice, this information is of only limited value in deciding the adaptability to flying as the maximum point of the physiological limits comes into question.
Accordingly, Perlman's method with which the ability to open actively can be tested by examining the opened state of the Eustachian tube during swallowing with sound waves and endoscopie examination of the orifice region were considered the proper method for this purpose.
A modification of Perlman's method is presented. Besides direct examination of the Eustachian tube itself, the importance of not overlooking factors that affect the Eustachian tube, such as diseases of the nose and accessory sinuses and allergicdisorders, is emphasized.