A Successful Case Report of Epipharyngeal Abrasive Therapy (EAT) in a Patient With Sleep Apnea Syndrome and Traumatic Tympanic Membrane Perforation Caused by Chronic Epipharyngitis

Abstract

Traumatic perforation of the tympanic membrane often occurs in Japanese patients who scratch their ears to relieve itching. Traumatic tympanic membrane perforation may close spontaneously, but the perforation may remain. One of the causes of prolonged tympanic membrane perforation closure is dysfunction of the Eustachian tube. In this study, I experienced a case of chronic epipharyngitis causing ear fullness and itching, and a traumatic perforation of the tympanic membrane caused by scratching with an earpick. The patient also had sleep apnea syndrome (SAS). Treatment of chronic epipharyngitis with epipharyngeal abrasive therapy (EAT) shortened the time to perforation closure and improved SAS, suggesting that EAT affected the improvement of Eustachian tube function and airway resistance in the epipharynx.

Keywords: airway resistance in the epipharynx; autonomic function; chronic epipharyngitis; eat; epipharyngeal abrasive therapy; eustachian tube dysfunction; mucociliary secretory system; sleep apnea syndrome; traumatic tympanic membrane perforation.