Quantitative evaluation of the upper airway resilience in adults

Objective To explore the possibility of quantitative evaluation of upper airway resilience by fibre endoscope with Muller maneuver, and to study the resilience difference at all levels of the pharyngeal wall. Methods Thirty normal male adults were included in the study. The fibre endoscopic photos were taken on palate and lingua region at different negative pressures during Muller maneuver. The cross section area, the arrowy and coronal dimension of palate and lingua region upper airway were studied, and the total pharyngeal wall resilience (TPWR), lateral pharyngeal wall resilience (LPWR) and anteroposterior pharyngeal wall resilience (APWR) at different levels of the upper airway were calculated. Results There was obvious PWR difference between the palate and lingua region upper airway. The TPWR, LPWR and APWR of the palate region upper airway were much more than those of the lingua region upper airway. There was significant PWR difference among different upper airway negative pressure levels. The LPWR was much more than APWR in the palate and lingua region upper airway. Conclusion Quantitative data of pharynx wall resilience can be obtained by fibre endoscope with Muller maneuver assisted by computers. And there are obvious TPWR, LPWR and APWR differences at different sites of the upper airway and different upper airway negative pressure levels. The evaluation of pharyngeal wall resilience should be done in standardized maneuver.