What is the tympanogram?
Tympanogram, also referred to as tympanometry, is a testing methodology that examines how the middle ear works. If you want to perform a tympanogram, a medical care provider, usually an ear physician, place a probe in the ear that changes the air pressure and causes the vibration of the ear drum. The results help to determine whether the ear drum is pierced, whether there is a fluid in the ear and whether the middle ear system works properly. The test can be performed in patients of all age groups. The results
are recorded on a graph created by a machine called a tympanometer that examines the capacity of the ear drum to reflect sound. The ear drum, also known as the tympanic membrane, is flexible. The greater the ability to reflect sound usually indicates higher mobility.
During the tympanogram, one is often asked to remain calm and refrain from speaking or swallowing. Any such movement can change the pressure in the middle ear and can lead to an inaccurate result. Incite a test, a person's ear will have to be without tRosek and requires an airtight seal between the tip of the probe and the ear. During the tympanogram, the patient will hear tones that can be loud and the probe can cause discomfort. The time required to perform the test is usually less than two minutes.
Tympanometer is a manual probe that is placed in the ear. The probe consists of pipes that include a speaker, microphone and pump. When the tool is placed in the ear, an airtight seal is created against the inner ear wall. The tone is sent via the speaker when the pressure is modified in a closed channel. The microphone records the amount of sound that reflects back during the test and the data is recorded on the graph.
Tympanogram information is based on data and do not require any answers from the patient. Inspecting of the ear that can learn the test movement of the tympanic membrane and the pressure of the middle ear. Tympanogram results are then mapped on the graph and marked asEither type a, b or c.
If the patient's outcome falls into type A, the movement of the tympanic membrane is considered normal. Type B reading is often a sign of minimal or no tympanic membrane flexibility that often requires medical treatment. The type C result may indicate a tympanic membrane with negative pressure. This reading of the tympanogram may be the result of downloading a tympanic membrane or obstruction in the Eustachian tube.