Djupesland P, Pedersen O F
Department of Otorthinolaryngolgoy, Ullevål University Hospital, 0407 Oslo, Norway.
Rhinol Suppl. 2000 Dec;16:52-8.
Acoustic rhinometry (AR), introduced a decade ago for assessment of the nasal airways of adults, has several attractive features relevant to application in a paediatric population. Its non-invasive nature, simplicity and rapidity are prime assets when examining infants and small children. Valid AR measurements can be obtained in a few seconds and require minimal co-operation. The striking consistency of AR studies of healthy subjects and the agreement with CT-derived and directly measured choanal dimensions are a strong indication of its reliability. Acoustic rhinometry optimised for infants and small children opens new perspectives and possibilities in the assessment of nasal airway dimensions and their relationship to pathological conditions in both the upper and the lower airways. The objective of this paper is to describe the advantages of AR in infants and children, but also point out its limitations and potential sources of error. Practical guidelines as to the measurement procedure and analysis and interpretation of AR-data are outlined.
声学鼻测量法（AR）于十年前被引入用于评估成人鼻气道，它具有一些与儿科人群应用相关的吸引人的特点。在检查婴儿和幼儿时，其非侵入性、简单性和快速性是主要优势。只需几秒钟就能获得有效的AR测量结果，而且所需的配合极少。对健康受试者进行的AR研究具有显著的一致性，并且与CT得出的和直接测量的后鼻孔尺寸相符，这有力地表明了其可靠性。针对婴儿和幼儿优化的声学鼻测量法为评估鼻气道尺寸及其与上、下气道病理状况的关系开辟了新的视角和可能性。本文的目的是描述AR在婴儿和儿童中的优势，但同时也指出其局限性和潜在的误差来源。文中概述了关于AR数据测量程序以及分析和解释的实用指南。
