Abstract
Rhinoresistometry and acoustic rhinometry are two established apparative methods to objectify the respiratory function of the nose. Both methods use different variables to describe nasal patency: “hydraulic diameter”, HD, in rhinoresistometry, and “minimal cross-sectional area”, MCA1 (nasal isthmus) and MCA2 (head of the inferior turbinate and cavernous body of the nasal septum), in acoustic rhinometry. ObjectiveThis study analyzes the mutual correlation of HD and MCA as a pilot study in patients without nasal pathologies. Additionally, we investigated if these objective variables correlate with the NOSE score, a validated tool to measure subjective perception of nasal patency. MethodPlanned data collection in a collective of 24 healthy subjects without nasal pathologies. ResultsStatistically significant, weak to moderate correlations were found between HD and MCA2 before decongestion. A moderate correlation was found between both HD and MCA2 and the NOSE score on the narrower side. ConclusionIn the assessment of nasal patency, it seems advisable to determine HD, MCA1 and MCA2, but also a subjective variable such as the NOSE score, which all seem to be not fully redundant variables. In further studies, the correlation of the variables should be assessed in patients with nasal pathologies.
Highlights
Objective apparative methods to assess the respiratory function of the nose can be used in preoperative diagnostics before functional or aesthetic rhinosurgery and as a postoperative quality control[1]
The correlation of the variables should be assessed in patients with nasal pathologies
Flow resistance and dynamics can be measured by rhinomanometry and rhinoresistometry, while acoustic rhinometry describes the geometry of the nasal flow channel[1,2]
Summary
Objective apparative methods to assess the respiratory function of the nose can be used in preoperative diagnostics before functional or aesthetic rhinosurgery and as a postoperative quality control[1]. Flow resistance and dynamics can be measured by rhinomanometry and rhinoresistometry, while acoustic rhinometry describes the geometry of the nasal flow channel[1,2]. Nasal resistance is the most important parameter to describe nasal patency; in rhinoresistometry, which is basically the calculation of additional variables from rhinomanometry by laws of fluid dynamics, but with the same setup, the variable “hydraulic diameter”, HD, is used to describe nasal patency[1]. HD is the diameter of an imaginary round pipe with the same flow resistance as the nose of the measured subject. It gives information about energy loss due to flow-induced friction and is strongly influenced by the narrowest area of the nose. While no internationally accepted normal values are yet established, Mlynski recommends to consider a HD < 5.5 mm as too narrow and > 6.5 mm as too wide, while normal nasal patency is thought to lie between these cut-off values[3,4]
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