Patulous Eustachian Tube and Otitis Media With Antineutrophil Cytoplasmic Antibody-Associated Vasculitis (OMAAV)

Abstract

Antineutrophil cytoplasmic antibody (ANCA)-associated vasculitis is a systemic necrotizing vasculitis that affects small to medium-sized vessels. We describe two cases of patulous Eustachian tube (PET) in patients with otitis media with ANCA-associated vasculitis (OMAAV). The two cases presented in this paper had previously been diagnosed with Eustachian tube (ET) stenosis, and both presented with bilateral aural fullness, with one also experiencing postnasal drip and hearing loss. Both patients experienced positive myeloperoxidase (MPO)-ANCA and negative proteinase 3 (PR3)-ANCA, and treatment for ANCA-associated vasculitis (AAV) resulted in a diagnosis of PET. The patients were treated with transnasal self-installation of physiological saline into the pharyngeal orifice of the ET. This paper highlights the importance of considering PET in the differential diagnosis of OMAAV patients presenting with aural fullness.

Keywords: acute otitis media; antineutrophil cytoplasmic antibody (anca) associated vasculitis (aav); chronic otitis media; eustachian tube function; patulous eustachian tube.