Middle ear pressure regulation is central to the maintenance of mucosal health and a well functioning middle ear. Regulation is achieved by the ventilatory function of the eustachian tube which, under normal conditions supplies the middle ear with a sufficient quantity of gasses to balance the net absorption by the mucosa. Disruption in this balanced supply- demand relationship causes the progressive development of middle ear underpressures, mucosal inflammation and effusion within the middle ear space. These changes, in turn cause a significant hearing loss and, if persistent may cause permanent pathologies of the middle ear ossicles, mucosa and tympanic membrane. Dysregulation can result from a decreased volume of gas exchanged with the environment during eustachian tube dilations, an increased rate of gas exchange with the mucosa and blood, or both. A knowledge of the mechanisms that control middle ear pressure regulation and of the conditions that disrupt normal functioning is fundamental to understanding the pathogenesis of otitis media with effusion and to developing rationale strategies for the prevention or treatment of that disease. The experiments included in this proposal address various aspects of middle ear pressure regulation. Specifically, they evaluate previously proposed hypotheses regarding feedback modulation of eustachian tube function, and determine the mechanism of gas exchange between middle ear, mucosa and blood under normal and disease conditions. These results will be used to refine existing models of middle ear pressure regulation; predict the behavior of middle ear pressure under a variety of conditions; develop a clinical test for the adequacy of middle ear pressure regulation, and define rational interventions for minimizing the pathological effects of dysregulation.
| Doyle, William J; Swarts, J Douglas (2010) Eustachian tube-Tensor veli palatini muscle-cranial base relationships in children and adults: an osteological study. Int J Pediatr Otorhinolaryngol 74:986-90 |
| Doyle, William J; Yuksel, Sancak; Banks, Juliane et al. (2007) Directional asymmetry in the measured nitrous oxide time constant for middle ear transmucosal gas exchange. Ann Otol Rhinol Laryngol 116:69-75 |
| Doyle, William J (2007) The mastoid as a functional rate-limiter of middle ear pressure change. Int J Pediatr Otorhinolaryngol 71:393-402 |
| Li-Korotky, Ha-Sheng; Kelly, Lori A; Piltcher, Otavio et al. (2007) Evaluation of microbial RNA extractions from Streptococcus pneumoniae. J Microbiol Methods 68:342-8 |
| Chad Kanick, S; Kasi, Sundeep; Douglas Swarts, J et al. (2006) Accuracy of CO2 conductance predicted using a morphometric model of the middle ear mucosa. Acta Otolaryngol 126:1252-9 |
| Yuksel, Sancak; Doyle, William J; Banks, Juliane et al. (2005) Nasal prostaglandin challenge increases N2O exchange from blood to middle ear. Auris Nasus Larynx 32:29-32 |
| Kanick, Stephen Chad; Doyle, William J; Ghadiali, Samir N et al. (2005) On morphometric measurement of oxygen diffusing capacity in middle ear gas exchange. J Appl Physiol 98:114-9 |
| Chen, Anton; Li, Ha-Sheng; Hebda, Patricia A et al. (2005) Gene expression profiles of early pneumococcal otitis media in the rat. Int J Pediatr Otorhinolaryngol 69:1383-93 |
| Casselbrant, Margaretha L; Mandel, Ellen M; Rockette, Howard E et al. (2004) The genetic component of middle ear disease in the first 5 years of life. Arch Otolaryngol Head Neck Surg 130:273-8 |
| Li-Korotky, Ha-Sheng; Swarts, J Douglas; Hebda, Patricia A et al. (2004) Cathepsin gene expression profile in rat acute pneumococcal otitis media. Laryngoscope 114:1032-6 |
Showing the most recent 10 out of 58 publications
