The Effect Of Bradykinin On Eustachian Tube And Nasal Patency

Abstract

The patency of the Eustachian tube and nasal passages is decreased during inflammation due to vascular congestion. The vasodilation and increased capillary permeability due to histamine have been known for years and treated with antihistamines. Recent evidence of another endogenous substance involved in inflammation, bradykinin, ten times more active than histamine, has led to this study which showed the effectiveness of bradykinin in reducing the patency of the Eustachian tube and nasal passages. A comparison was made with an even more effective substance, eledoisin, which is similar to bradykinin but does not occur in mammals. Two drugs, aspirin and Dilantin, that might have reduced inflammation by blocking bradykinin, were found to be ineffective. This may shed some light on the highly variable results obtained clinically when treating congested nasal passages and Eustachian tubes.