Title

Cone beam imaging and audiometric evaluation of the eustachian tube in OSMF: A case-control study

Authors

Reema Manoj¹, Mandavi Waghmare¹, Boddu Tejvanti^1, *, Richa Kamble¹, Iqra Malgundkar² & Gargie Gharat²

Affiliation

¹Department of Oral Medicine and Radiology, DY Patil University, School of Dentistry, Navi Mumbai, Maharashtra, India; ²Department of Dentistry, DY Patil University, School of Dentistry, Navi Mumbai, Maharashtra, India; *Corresponding author

Email

Reema Manoj - E-mail: dr.reema28@gmail.com

Mandavi Waghmare - E-mail: mandavi.waghmare@dypatil.edu

Boddu Tejvanti - E-mail: tejvantib9@gmail.com 

Richa Kamble - E-mail: richakamble1996@gmail.com

Iqra Malgundkar - E-mail: iqraina0770@gmail.com

Gargie Gharat - E-mail: gargiegharat@gmail.com

Article Type

Research Article

Date

Received June 1, 2026; Revised June 30, 2026; Accepted June 30, 2026, Published June 30, 2026
 

Abstract

The rising incidence of oral submucous fibrosis (OSMF) among younger Indians and its potentially aggressive progression necessitate investigation of deeper structural changes, including those affecting the eustachian tube (ET). Hence, this 2-year departmental study evaluated morphometric and volumetric alterations in 77 participants (48 OSMF patients and 29 healthy controls) using clinical examination, CBCT and audiometric assessment, with OSMF cases classified by functional stage. Half of the OSMF patients showed an interincisal opening of 25–35 mm (M2) and significant reductions in ET length and volume were observed in the study group compared with controls (p<0.05). ET dimensions and audiometric findings also differed significantly across OSMF stages (M1–M4), indicating progressive structural compromise associated with worsening auditory function (p<0.05). Thus, we report CBCT-based evidence that OSMF is associated with stage-related ET morphometric and volumetric reduction, contributing to auditory impairment and broadening understanding of its deeper oropharyngeal effects.

Keywords

Hearing loss, cone beam computer tomography (CBCT), eustachian tube (ET), oral submucous fibrosis (OSMF)

Citation

Manoj et al. Bioinformation 22(6): 3556-3561 (2026)

Edited by

Ritik Kashwani 

ISSN

0973-2063

Publisher

Biomedical Informatics

License

This is an Open Access article which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly credited. This is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License.