Measurement of nasal mucociliary transport rate in normal man

After reviewing the main methods existing to calculate the rate of the mucociliary transport, the authors describe their personal technique. A 99mTechnetium Sulphur Colloid drop is deposited in the nasal fossa, which is carried away by the cilia down to the rhinopharynx and followed by a gamma camera. To calculate the transport rate, a new method of quantification has been introduced, based on the formation of a parametric image. A study was carried out in 14 males without any pathology of the upper airways, obtaining a mean velocity of 5.3 mm per min (range 3.3.-8.2).