Examination of Wideband Tympanometry (WBT) Parameters in Individuals with Healthy Middle Ear

Abstract

Objective: The aim of this study is to collect the WBT data of healthy middle ears and to examine the age-related changes in WBT results.
Material and Methods: 60 individuals with normal hearing aged 20–49 years were included in the study. Three age groups comprising 20 individuals were formed for each decade. WBT measurements were performed.
Results: There is no statistically significant difference between the groups in terms of WBT values (p>0.05). The WBT results are not age-dependent within the age range of 20–49 years. There is no statistically significant difference between pressurized and nonpressurized absorbance values (p>0.05).
Conclusion: We concluded that there was no difference between pressurized and nonpressurized absorbance values in individuals with a healthy middle ear and the WBT results did not change with age in the 20–49 age range due to the lack of statistical significance. As it provides lot of information with a single measurement, Wideband tympanometry can be safely used in the clinic as a part of an audiological test set. Studies can be conducted to determine the specificity and sensitivity of WBT in adult and pediatric patient groups.

Keywords

• Wideband typmanometry
• Absorbance
• Middle ear

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