Effect of Age on the Tympanometric Parameters

Background: As individuals become older, their middle ear may undergo physiological changes that cause variations in the tympanometric parameters. Objectives: To determine the effect of age on tympanometric parameters and to establish normative data for both young and elderly age groups. Methods: A cross-sectional study was carried out from October 2024 to March 2025 at the Clinical Otolaryngology and Audio-Vestibular Consultation Unit. Participants with normal otoscopic findings were classified into young and old age groups. Tympanometric assessments were performed using the Amplivox Otowave 102 device, measuring ear canal volume (ECV), tympanometric peak pressure (TPP), static acoustic admittance (Ytm), and tympanometric width (TW). Results: The study included 143 young individuals with a mean age of 25.32±3.92 years and 144 old people with a mean age of 76.84±8.90 years. The statistical analysis revealed that age affected ear canal volume, acoustic admittance, tympanometric peak pressure, and tympanometric width compared to the younger group. Those 85 years of age and older exhibited significantly greater ear canal volume and tympanometric width among the older age subgroups. Nevertheless, there were no significant differences between the left and right ears in any of the tympanometric data. Conclusions: The results demonstrated a notable age-related change in tympanometric parameters and provided credence to the use of age-specific normative data for accurate assessment.