Acquired Hearing Impairment in Children Flashcards
What may conductive deafness be due to?
A problem in:
- Canal
- Ossicles
- Middle Ear
- Tympanic membrane.
What can be the problem with the ear canal?
It can be obstructed by wax or a foreign body which can cause conductive hearing loss.
Ear canal problems can rarely cause…
Significant hearing impairment.
What is acute otitis media?
Otitis media is an infection of the middle ear that causes inflammation (redness and swelling) aka. EAR INFECTION.
Acute Otitis Media is very common, especially in _________.
Pre-school children.
In acute otitis media, complications are ______.
Rare.
How long does acute otitis media last usually?
3 to 5 days.
With Acute otitis Media, we don’t expect any long term…
Hearing Problems.
What can be a problem with the eat drum?
It can be perforated- a part of the ear drum or the whole ear drum could be missing?
Do perforations affect hearing?
YES.
What can perforations also cause?
Discharge.
How are perforations fixed?
Sometimes they may heal on their own.
Or they may have to be repaired.
Name the proper name for Glue Ear.
Otitis Media with Effusion.
What is otitis media with effusion?
-Middle ear fluid is present for 3 months without any sign of infection.
Glue ear is very _______.
Common.
Why is otitis media with effusion known as glue ear?
As the collection of fluid behind the ear drum is thick and “glue like”.
What is the point prevalence of glue ear in 2 year olds?
20% of 2 year olds will have it.
What is the cumulative incidence of glue ear by age 5?
80% of kids by age 5 will have had it at some time.
What are the clinical features of glue ear?
- most common in Pre-school child
- Can cause mild conductive hearing loss
- Can cause speech delay
- Also recurrent acute otitis media
- Asymptomatic- very subtle, no pian
What are the risk factors for glue ear?
- Male sex
- Smoke exposure
- Family Size (big)
- Day Care
- Bottle Feeding
- Winter month (congested upper respiratory tract)
- Acute otitis media
Glue ear is rare in _________ __________.
Older children.
Why is glue ear sometimes not treated?
It’s often relatively short-lived, benign and will get better on it’s own.
For Glue ear, what do we do before treatment?
3 months watchful waiting.
For medical management of glue ear, what is a complete waste of time?
- Antibiotics
- Steroids (oral, topical nasal)
- Antihistamines
- Decongestants
- Nasal Balloons
How is glue ear medically managed?
Through surgery.
Name the surgery performed to get rid of glue ear.
-Insertion of Ventilation Tubes (grommets)
They give temporary symptomatic relief and improve hearing and infections.
After 6 to 12 moths, what happens to the ventilation tube (grommet)?
They fall out.
What is an advantage of ventilation tube surgery?
-painless, 2 minute surgery, come and go on same day
After glue ear surgery, what happens?
The child wakes up with normal hearing so has to adjust.
Apart from ventilation tube surgery, name another type of surgery to get rid of glue ear.
Adenoidectomy.
What is adenoidectomy?
Removal of adenoids.
Why are the adenoids removed to stop glue ear?
It removes the source of infection and inflammation (removes obstruction).
______ are small lumps of tissue at the back of the nose, above the roof of the mouth.
adenoids.
What are the advantages of adenoidectomy surgery?
- sustained benefit (years)
- quality of life benefit.
In adeniodectomy what is there a small risk of?
Bleeding.
Glue ear is very ______.
Common.
Glue ear is usually b______ and s_____-l______.
Benign and self-limiting.
When would glue ear warrant surgery?
If it causes hearing impairment or lots of infection.
Name the 2 treatment choices for glue ear.
- Grommets
- Adenoidectomy
Apart from falling out, what is another problem with grommets/ventilation tubes?
They can sometimes cause infection.
