Efficacy of Nasal Airflow‐Inducing Maneuver in Laryngectomy Patients: A Retrospective Cohort Study

Objective To evaluate the effectiveness of the nasal airflow‐inducing maneuver (NAIM) using the Sniffin' Sticks (Burghart, Wedel, Germany) olfactory threshold test, Open Essence (OE, FUJIFILM Wako Pure Chemical Corporation, Osaka, Japan) olfactory identification test, and self‐administered odor questionnaire (SAOQ) for olfactory perception in NAIM experienced and NAIM first‐time groups. For NAIM first‐time group, the relationships between time from laryngectomy to first NAIM, olfactory threshold, and identification ability were also evaluated. Study Design Retrospective cohort study. Methods Sixty‐six patients who had undergone laryngectomy (NAIM experienced group: 23; NAIM first‐time group: 43) underwent the threshold test, OE, and SAOQ. Results Mean results of the threshold test were 2.7 (±2.3) and 2.5 (±3.0) for the NAIM experienced and NAIM first‐time groups, respectively, indicating no significant differences ( P = .35). The mean number of correct responses in OE was 4.5 (±2.7) and 3.2 (±3.0) in the NAIM experienced and nonrehabilitation groups, respectively, indicating a higher number in the NAIM experienced group ( P = .06). Mean result of SAOQ was 47.9% (±30.9%) and 25.5% (±27.0%) in the NAIM experienced and NAIM first‐time groups, respectively, indicating a significantly higher result in the NAME experienced group ( P = .003). There were no correlations of threshold test and identification test scores with time from laryngectomy to the first NAIM (threshold test: r = 0.03, P = .87; OE: r = −0.03, P = .87). Conclusion NAIM enabled odor perception in patients who underwent laryngectomy, and SAOQ was an effective method for evaluating this. Further, olfactory tests in both groups showed that NAIM might restore olfaction irrespective of time elapsed since laryngectomy. Level of Evidence 4. Laryngoscope , 130: 2013–2018, 2020