Subjects
We enrolled two groups of patients from January 2015 to January 2016. The TP group was composed of 20 patients(21 ears) with traumatic tympanic perforation (mean age, 39.6±13.8 years; range, 14 to 65 years; male/female, 9/11), normal otoscopic findings prior to testing and no significant otologic history. This group was assumed to be representative of the population with normal ET function. The COME group consisted of 37 patients (51 ears) with chronic OME (mean age, 41.9±14.6 years; range,12 to 64 years; male/female, 19/18) and a persistent type B tympanogram after conservative treatment for 3 months. These patients underwent tympanostomy tube placement and the test was carried out on the day following surgery (at this time the ET most closely resembled its pre-operative state). Patients with craniofacial abnormalities such as cleft palate, those with a history of radiotherapy following nasopharyngeal tumors and those with acute upper respiratory tract infection and otorrhea were excluded.