Evaluation of aortic stiffness by echocardiography in tympanosclerosis patients

Abstract

Tympanosclerosis (TS) is a scarring process that may occur during otitis media. Aortic stiffness (AS) is a significant predictor for the development of heart diseases due to its close relationship with atherosclerosis. Similar pathophysiological processes based on inflammation may explain both TS and AS formation. We hypothesized that aortic elasticity, an indicator of AS, might be impaired in patients suffering from TS. The present study aimed to evaluate echocardiographically the aortic elasticity properties and measure blood inflammatory parameters in TS-detected patients.Ninety-eight participants diagnosed with chronic otitis media were enrolled in the study. TS-detected 42 participants were subjected to the study group, while 56 without TS constituted the control group. The two groups' demographic, clinical, echocardiographic, and laboratory characteristics were compared.Demographic, clinical, and laboratory parameter differences were found insignificant. Hs-CRP, neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio, and systemic immune-inflammation index were significantly higher in the study group than the control group (p=0.018, p=0.003, p=0.019, respectively).The study group had significantly lower aortic strain (11.80 ± 4.84 vs. 16.30 ± 3.91; p<0.001) and distensibility (5.23 ± 2.68 vs. 7.24 ± 2.89; p=0.001) values than the control group. The AS index was meaningfully higher in the study group than in the control group (4.81 ± 2.41 vs. 3.12 ± 1.02; p<0.001). Other echocardiographic parameters between the two groups were found to be insignificant.In TS-detected patients, AS parameters were found to be impaired. Aortic elasticity parameters measured by echocardiography, a non-invasive and easily accessible method, can help predict the risk of atherosclerosis and related diseases in TS-developed patients.