A nasopharyngoscopy is a

surgical procedure Surgery ''cheirourgikē'' (composed of χείρ, "hand", and ἔργον, "work"), via la, chirurgiae, meaning "hand work". is a medical specialty that uses operative manual and instrumental techniques on a person to investigate or treat a pat ...

performed to examine the

nose A nose is a protuberance in vertebrates that houses the nostrils, or nares, which receive and expel air for respiration alongside the mouth. Behind the nose are the olfactory mucosa and the sinuses. Behind the nasal cavity, air next passes th ...

and

throat In vertebrate anatomy, the throat is the front part of the neck, internally positioned in front of the vertebrae. It contains the pharynx and larynx. An important section of it is the epiglottis, separating the esophagus from the trachea (windpipe ...

. It is performed using a

fiberoptic An optical fiber, or optical fibre in Commonwealth English, is a flexible, transparent fiber made by drawing glass (silica) or plastic to a diameter slightly thicker than that of a human hair. Optical fibers are used most often as a means to ...

instrument called a flexible fiberoptic nasopharyngoscope, that is inserted through the nose in order to examine both it, and the back of the throat. It is typically used to identify a variety of conditions including nasal septal deviation,

polyps A polyp in zoology is one of two forms found in the phylum Cnidaria, the other being the medusa. Polyps are roughly cylindrical in shape and elongated at the axis of the vase-shaped body. In solitary polyps, the aboral (opposite to oral) end is ...

, and

edema Edema, also spelled oedema, and also known as fluid retention, dropsy, hydropsy and swelling, is the build-up of fluid in the body's Tissue (biology), tissue. Most commonly, the legs or arms are affected. Symptoms may include skin which feels t ...

, and the of conditions including

nosebleeds A nosebleed, also known as epistaxis, is bleeding from the nose. Blood can flow down into the stomach, and cause nausea and vomiting. In more severe cases, blood may come out of both nostrils. Rarely, bleeding may be so significant that low bloo ...

and

sore throat Sore throat, also known as throat pain, is pain or irritation of the throat. Usually, causes of sore throat include * viral infections * group A streptococcal infection (GAS) bacterial infection * pharyngitis (inflammation of the throat) * tonsi ...

. This procedure can be combined with the intentional application of intrathoracic pressure to perform a procedure known as

Müller's maneuver Müller's maneuver is a procedure used in medicine to diagnose some types of tinnitus, and other medical problems. Procedure After a forced expiration, an attempt at inspiration is made with closed mouth and nose, whereby the negative pressure i ...

. It is often used to examine cases of

obstructive sleep apnea Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is the most common sleep-related breathing disorder and is characterized by recurrent episodes of complete or partial obstruction of the upper airway leading to reduced or absent breathing during sleep. These episod ...

, and is often favorable to other procedures as it does not require exposure to radiation, can be performed while the patient is sitting or in the supine position, can both be performed while the patient is asleep or awake, and is inexpensive. However, it is an invasive procedure, which may make it unfavorable to some. It is also often used to evaluate children with

stridor Stridor (Latin for "creaking or grating noise") is a high-pitched extra-thoracic breath sound resulting from turbulent air flow in the larynx or lower in the bronchial tree. It is different from a stertor which is a noise originating in the pha ...

. In other cases, it can be used to evaluate and diagnose cases of

nasopharyngeal cancer Nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC), or nasopharynx cancer, is the most common cancer originating in the nasopharynx, most commonly in the postero-lateral nasopharynx or pharyngeal recess ( fossa of Rosenmüller), accounting for 50% of cases. NPC occurs ...

, often in addition to a

biopsy A biopsy is a medical test commonly performed by a surgeon, interventional radiologist, or an interventional cardiologist. The process involves extraction of sample cells or tissues for examination to determine the presence or extent of a diseas ...

.{{Cite journal, last1=Yang, first1=Shujuan, last2=Wu, first2=Siying, last3=Y. Chen, first3=Xiao, date=6 November 2015, title=Screening for nasopharyngeal cancer, pmid=26544798, journal= Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, volume=2015 , issue=11, pages=CD008423, doi=10.1002/14651858.CD008423.pub2, pmc=6486300

References

Surgery

See also

References