No abstract available.
Mucociliary Clearance* ; Sinusitis*

Humans ; Mucociliary Clearance ; Nasal Mucosa ; physiology

The mucociliary system of the airway is composed of cilia, mucus and periciliary fluid, and plays an important role in airway defense by eliminating inhaled particles. Efficient mucociliary activity is essential for maintaining the normal physiologic functions of the nasal cavity and paranasal sinuses. The overall propulsive effect of the mucus blanket depends upon the arrangement of cilia, the ciliary beat frequency (CBF), and their metachronal relationships (or ciliary wave disorder [CWD]). This article reviews the mechanism of CBF.
Cilia ; Epithelial Cells* ; Mucociliary Clearance ; Mucus ; Nasal Cavity ; Paranasal Sinuses

To date, there has not been sufficient experimental evidence to demonstrate the pharmacological effect of secretolytic and mucolytic drugs. Scintigraphic studies to detect the mucociliary clearance in the maxillary sinus before and after application of a secretolytic drug (Gelomyrtol(R) forte, G.Pohl-Boskamp, Hohenlockstedt, Germanym) were perfomed on four healthy persons and one patient having undergone sinus surgery. The most important parameters was the mucociliary transport velocity of the "region of interest-maxillary sinus" and the increase of radioactivity accumulated in a swab placed in the middle nasal meatus. Measurements were done with a gamma-camera, 99m Technetium-sulphur colloid was used as the radiopharmacon. A dose of 1 Mbq in 0.2 ml NaCl-solution was injected into the maxillary sinus. The results showed a clear increase of mucociliary transport velocity in the maxillary sinus after intake of secretolytics in connection with an increase of radioactivity in the swab. The results can be explained by the secretolytic and secretomotoric effects of the investigated drug. The study reveals that ethereal oils have secretolytic effects and also have a pharmacological effect on the mucociliary apparatus.
Colloids ; Ether ; Humans ; Maxillary Sinus* ; Mucociliary Clearance* ; Oils ; Radioactivity

PURPOSE: To illustrate frequently encountered anatomic variations on PNS computed tomography(CT) and to assess their clinical significance. MATERIALS AND METHODS: CT findings of 1523 patients, who underwent PNS CT with no history of sinus surgery, were reviewed, and prevalence of each anatomic variation and its relationship with mucociliary clearance pathway was evaluated. RESULTS: Two categories of anatomic variations were encountered. The first group included variations of the turbinates, such as concha bullosa(28.6% ), paradoxical middle turbinate(31.5%), of the uncinate process, such as medially bent or folded(36.3%), laterally bent(3.7%) or uncinate bulla(0.5%), of the ethmoidal sinus, such as Haller's ce11(28.2%), large agger nasi ce11(9.6%) or large ethmoidal bulla(23.5%) and nasal septal deviation(24. 1%), which might cause obstruction of mucociliary clearance pathway and thus give rise to secondary obstructive sinusitis. The second group included Onodi ce11(1.4%) and medial depression of the lamina papyracea (3.5%), which were not related with obstructive sinusitis. 87 cases of large agger nasi cell were associated with obstruction of nasofrontal recess. Large ethmoidal bulla(452 cases), Haller's ce11(245 cases) and true concha bullosa (25 cases) contributed to narrowing of the infundibulum. Medially bent uncinate process(220 cases), concha bullosa(157 cases), paradoxical middle turbinate(126 cases) and nasal septal deviation(93 cases) were observed in middle meatal obstruction and supreme concha (3 cases) accompanied sphenoethmoidal recess obstruction. CONCLUSION: Recognition of anatomic variations on PNS CT is important to build a treatment plan in patients with obstructive sinusitis as they may represent causes of the disease, and to avoid critical complications during functional endoscopic sinus surgery.
Anatomic Variation ; Depression ; Humans ; Mucociliary Clearance ; Prevalence ; Sinusitis ; Turbinates

Submucosal glands produce most of nasal mucous secretion which play an important role in airflow hydration, mucociliary transport, innate immunity and antimicrobial defense. However, excessive mucus secretion is related with pathophysiologic characteristics in several chronic inflammatory diseases such as chronic rhinosinusitis and allergic rhinitis. This review details the anatomy, physiology of submucosal gland in nose and summarized pathophysiologic relationship between the submucosal gland and nasal diseases.
Immunity, Innate ; Mucociliary Clearance ; Mucus ; Nose Diseases ; Nose* ; Physiology ; Rhinitis

An enlarged pneumatized middle turbinate, termed "concha bullosa" is a relatively common anatomical variant. It may be the site of inflammatory disease ranging from simple mucosal thickening to a mucocele. But a conchal mucocele is a rare disease such as mucoceles of the posterior ethmoid and sphenoid sinus. The mucociliary transport within a concha bullosa is usually toward the conchal ostium located on the anterosuperior aspect of the middle turbinate and in most cases it opens into the frontal recess. Chronic obstruction of a conchal ostium can lead to a mucocele. Chronic pressure within the mucocele can cause the walls of the middle turbinate to expand, further destructing bulla, other ethmoid cells, and lamina papyracea. Authors have experienced one case of a conchal mucocele with anterior ethmoid and frontal recess extension which presented with exophthalmos. We performed functional endoscopic sinus surgery. Postoperatively, exophthalmos was spontaneously corrected.
Exophthalmos* ; Mucocele* ; Mucociliary Clearance ; Rare Diseases ; Sphenoid Sinus ; Turbinates

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: There has been many attempts to find out the changes in the nasal mucociliary transport function under various conditions. In this study, we intended to determine if air in a sauna exerts any beneficial effect on the nasal mucociliary function using the saccharin method, which is regarded as the proper screening test for nasal mucociliary function. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Normal healthy adults (16 men, 15 women) aged from 18 to 22 volunteered for this study. We measured each saccharin transit time (STT) twice, inside a room (25degreesC, 85%), a dry sauna (70degreesC, 85%), and a wet sauna (70degreesC, 100%), respectively. RESULTS: The average STT was 7.98+/-2.95 minutes at the room, 8.47+/-1.71 at the dry sauna, and 7.59+/-2.95 at the wet sauna. There was no meaningful relationships of STT among each condition (p=0.157). CONCLUSION: Air in a sauna has neither any beneficial effect on the nasal mucociliary function nor any harmful effect on it.
Adult ; Humans ; Male ; Mass Screening ; Mucociliary Clearance ; Saccharin ; Steam Bath*

Objective: To measure the nasal mucociliary clearance (NMC) time among adults residing in two Philippine communities with different air quality indices using the saccharin and methylene blue test. Methods: Design: Cross-Sectional Study. Setting: Diliman, Quezon City and Puerto Princesa, Palawan. Participantss: Fifty (50) participants, 25 residing in an urban city with fair air quality index and 25 residing in a rural province with good air quality index. Results: The mean NMC time of the urban group was 22.15±12.68 mins and was significantly longer than the NMC time of the rural group which was 5.29±2.87mins; t(48) = 6.643, p<0.0001). Conclusion Increased air pollution may be associated with significant prolongation of nasal mucociliary clearance time among urban residents with fair quality air index compared to rural residents with good quality air index.
Air Pollution ; Methylene Blue ; Mucociliary Clearance ; Environmental Pollution

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: The effect of the hypertonic nasal douching solutions on mucociliary clearance was studied to ascertain the effect of hypertonic seawater. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Twenty-eight normal subjects were included in a randomized double -blind crossover trial. Hypertonic seawater (3%, Sinomarin(R)) was used as a hypertonic nasal douching solution. In order to determine the effect of hypertonic seawater on nasal mucosa, the mucociliary clearance was measured by the saccharin clearance time (SCT). RESULTS: The resultant SCT after administration of hypertonic seawater was significantly reduced compared with normal saline (0.9%)(p<0.05). CONCLUSION: This results showed that the hypertonic seawater improved mucociliary clearance time in the nasal cavity. The mechanism of this effect is probably brought about by changes in mucus viscoelastic properties.
Mucociliary Clearance* ; Mucus ; Nasal Cavity ; Nasal Mucosa ; Saccharin ; Seawater* ; Therapeutic Irrigation