Functional study of the eustachian tube with sequential scintigraphy.

The authors investigated the tubal function by means of sequential scintigraphy in 16 patients affected by chronic otitis media and in 3 patients with posttraumatic perforation of the tympanic membrane. Evaluated parameters were: appearance time (AT), radioactivity peak time, rise time in the tympanic cavity, eustachian tube and rhinopharynx, and radioactivity percent values passed in the rhinopharynx. The tubal pressure-equilibrating function was determined by means of the manometer pump section of the impedance meter. A significant relationship between the pressure-equilibrating function and the tubal scintigraphy parameters has been detected. The variability of the AT in the tube and the almost constant time needed by the radioactive tracer to go through the tube and reach the rhinopharynx could indicate that a major role in the tympanic cavity drainage is played by the tympanic ostium and the surrounding mucosa.