Department of Otolaryngology - Head and Neck Surgery, Chang Gung Memorial Hospital, Chang Gung University, Taoyuan, Taiwan.
Ultrasonics. 2012 Jul;52(5):663-7. doi: 10.1016/j.ultras.2012.01.012. Epub 2012 Feb 6.
The objective of this study is to explore the feasibility of using ultrasound to detect mastoid effusion (ME). In the past, ultrasound has been used to measure middle ear effusion (MEE) by injecting water into the external ear canal to measure echoes from the tympanic membrane, which is uncomfortable for the patient. It has been shown that air cells in the mastoid of patients with MEE are filled with fluid, which implies that ME could be a useful indicator of MEE. This study suggests using ultrasound to detect ME as a potentially noninvasive approach for MEE detection. In vitro experiments were performed on ten cadaver samples of the human ear. A single-element 1 MHz transducer was used to measure the mastoid of each cadaver before and after injecting water into the mastoid. The experimental results showed that the relative amplitudes of ultrasonic signals differed significantly between before (0.24 ± 0.09, mean ± standard deviation) and after (0.15 ± 0.03) the water injection (p<0.05, t-test), demonstrating that the ultrasonic reflection can be used to detect ME. The location of the human mastoid under the skin behind the ear allows external measurements, and hence ultrasound-based ME detection may be an alternative, noninvasive diagnostic approach to detecting MEE in the future, providing an examination that avoids discomfort.
本研究旨在探讨利用超声检测乳突积液（ME）的可行性。既往研究通过向外耳道注水来测量中耳积液（MEE），以测量鼓膜的回声，但这种方法会给患者带来不适。有研究表明，患有 MEE 的患者的乳突气房充满了液体，这表明 ME 可能是 MEE 的一个有用指标。本研究提出了一种使用超声检测 ME 的方法，作为一种非侵入性检测 MEE 的潜在手段。本研究在 10 个人体耳朵标本上进行了体外实验。使用 1MHz 的单阵元换能器，在向乳突注水前后分别测量每个尸体的乳突。实验结果表明，注水前后超声信号的相对幅度差异有统计学意义（0.24±0.09 与 0.15±0.03，p<0.05，t 检验），表明超声反射可用于检测 ME。人的乳突位于耳后皮肤下，允许进行外部测量，因此，基于超声的 ME 检测可能是未来检测 MEE 的一种替代、非侵入性诊断方法，提供一种无不适感的检查手段。
