MIDDLE EAR AND EUSTACHIAN TUBE FUNCTIONS IN ADULTS WITH LARYNGOPHARYNGEAL REFLUX
1Başkent Üniversitesi Tıp Fakültesi, KBB Anabilim dalı, Adana, Türkiye Objective: The relationship between laryngopharyngeal reflux (LFR) and middle ear diseases has been discussed in the literature for many years. However, how Eustachian tube and middle ear functions are affected in patients clinically diagnosed with LFR has not been shown in the literature. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the Eustachian tube and middle ear functions objectively using pure tone audiometry, acoustic tympanometry and multifrequency tympanometry in adults diagnosed with LFR.Material and Method: In this study, 26 individuals who were clinically diagnosed as LFR and aged between 18-60 and 26 healthy were included in the study voluntarily in this study. Reflux Finding Score and Reflux Symptom Index scores were determined for all participants. Electroacoustic immitancemetry, multifrequency tympanometry, acoustic reflex, Eustachian function tests and pure tone audimetry were performed on all participants to evaluate middle ear and auditory tube functions.
Results: It was observed that there were statistically significant differences between the study group and the control group for all the questions in the brief information form asked to answer and that questioned Eustachian dysfunction (p <0.001). When the immitansmetric measurements obtained for both ears were examined, no significant difference was found between the groups. When the middle ear resonance frequency values obtained by multifrequency tympanometry were examined, there was no statistically significant difference between the groups.
Conclusion: Laryngopharyngeal reflux may cause more clinical signs and symptoms related to Eustachian tube and the middle ear. However, a direct effect on audiological test results such as electroacoustic immitansmetry, multifrequency tympanometry, acoustic reflex, Eustachian function tests and pure sound audiometry couldnot be shown. Further studies on this subject are needed.
Keywords : Eustachian tube, middle ear, laryngopharyngeal reflux, tympanometry, resonance frequency