Date of Graduation

Spring 2010

Degree

Doctor of Audiology

Department

Communication Sciences and Disorders

Committee Chair

Neil DiSarno

Abstract

Accurate diagnosis of middle ear disorders in adults and children is a challenging task because of the complexity of disorders. The Wideband Energy Reflectance (WBER) technique provides simplicity and accuracy in diagnosing middle ear disorders across a wide frequency range. This research is expanding the studies of WBER to investigate the middle ear function in normal and pathological conditions of the middle ear in adults and children. Findings showed that WBER not only can distinguish abnormal from normal middle ear function but also can characterize different middle ear disorders in adults and children. Several specific WBER patterns were established in a variety of middle ear disorders among adults and children that should help in early diagnosis of such pathologies. The energy reflectance (ER) pattern included significantly higher ER in the children control group than the adult control group at 0.5 kHz and 1 kHz, abnormally high or shallower ER in otosclerotic ears with a characteristic Carhart notch at 2 kHz, abnormally low ER in ears with tympanic membrane (TM) perforation, and abnormally low ER with deep notch in ears with hypermobile TM. In the presence of negative middle-ear pressure, elevated ER at ambient pressure was also seen. Results also showed that standard tympanometry was less sensitive in diagnosing middle ear disorders when compared to WBER especially in otosclerotic cases. Further studies are still required to validate the clinical use of ER in larger numbers of individuals with confirmed middle ear disorders.

Keywords

wideband energy reflectance, otosclerosis, otitis media with effusion, eustachian tube dysfunction, tympanometry

Subject Categories

Communication Sciences and Disorders

Copyright

© Alaaeldin M. Elsayed

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