Valsalva manoeuvre

plural Valsalva manoeuvres · alternative Valsalva maneuver

1. medicineA self-administered procedure comprising an attempted exhalation against a closed airway, usually performed by closing one's mouth and pinching one's nose shut while attempting, with moderate force, to expel air.

   Variations of the Valsalva manoeuvre can be used during medical examination.

   3 more examples

   We observed forearm vasodilatation following the Valsalva manoeuvre in 11 out of 19 normal subjects; the remainder showed a persistent forearm vasoconstriction (Bennett et al. 1979b).

   1983, Roger Bannister, Autonomic Failure, Oxford University Press, page 426

   When that time comes, a person may perform the Valsalva manoeuvre, increasing the pressure inside the abdomen by exhaling against a closed airway as if popping one’s ears on a flight.

   2018, Alex Blasdel, “Bowel movement: the push to change the way you poo”, in The Guardian

   The Valsalva manoeuvre is performed by forced expiration against a closed glottis. It is attributed to Antonio Valsalva (1666–1723), who described it as a test of Eustachian tube patency and as a method of expelling pus from the middle ear.

   2019, David Chambers, Christopher Huang, Gareth Matthews, Basic Physiology for Anaesthetists, 2nd edition, Cambridge University Press, page 175

   Synonyms: autoinsufflation