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Video-Otoendoscopic Assessment of Tympanic Membrane Recovery Duration After Valsalva Maneuver as a Simple Screening for Eustachian Tube Dysfunction in Allergic Rhinitis
Abstract
Eustachian tube dysfunction (ETD) is commonly associated with allergic rhinitis (AR) due to inflammatory changes affecting the nasopharyngeal and Eustachian tube mucosa. This study aimed to analyze the relationship between tympanic membrane (TM) recovery duration after Valsalva maneuver and Eustachian tube function (ETF) assessed by video otoendoscopy and ETF tympanometry in patients with allergic rhinitis. An observational analytic cross-sectional study was conducted involving AR patients and healthy controls. Tympanic membrane movement after Valsalva maneuver was recorded using video otoendoscopy, and the duration required for the TM to return to its initial position was measured. ETF was evaluated using tympanometry during resting condition and Valsalva maneuver. Patients with AR demonstrated significantly shorter TM recovery duration compared with healthy controls (p<0.001). Significant differences were also observed in ETF tympanometry parameters between groups. TM recovery duration showed a strong correlation with the distance between resting and Valsalva tympanometric curves in both control (r=0.897; p<0.001) and AR groups (r=0.920; p<0.001). Video otoendoscopic assessment of TM recovery duration after Valsalva maneuver may serve as a simple complementary method for evaluating ETF in allergic rhinitis patients.
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.14421/biomedich.2026.152.2109-2115
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