CLINICAL FOCUS ON EAR DISORDERS Flashcards
-Middle-ear infection; Caused by the spread of throat or respiratory infection via the auditory (eustachian) tube;
Otitis media
Other causes: ruptured eardrum, compacted earwax.
Conduction Deafness
Symptomatic of inflammation, especially of the eardrum (myringitis);
Tinnitus
-Chronic disease of inner ear (labyrinth) with recurrent episodes of vertigo, tinnitus, and progressive sensorineural hearing loss. Caused by excess endolymph or the mixing of endolymph and perilymph, perhaps due to a rupture in the labyrinth membrane.
Ménière’s Syndrome
Results from damage to any neural structure in the auditory pathway—cochlea, vestibulocochlear nerve, brainstem, auditory cortex of brain
Sensorineural Deafness
Caused by conflicting visual input and movement input (from the vestibular apparatus), such as motion that is felt but not seen. These mismatched signals cause the brain to induce vomitin
Motion Sickness
Often a symptom of nerve damage in the cochlea or of the cochlear nerve.
Tinnitus
Can cause loss of taste due to inflamed or damaged facial nerve (chorda tympani); If untreated, may spread to the sinuses and cause meningitis.
Otitis media
May be an example of otoacoustic emissions caused when damaged hair cells vibrate in the absence of incoming sound, or create their own sounds spontaneously.
Tinnitus
-Fusing of stapes to oval window or of the ossicles to each other; Caused by spongy bone growth; Resulting hearing loss that can be treated surgically; Often idiopathic but can be caused by otitis media.
Otosclerosis
-Any condition preventing sound waves from reaching the cochlea. Most commonly caused by otitis media & otosclerosis
Conduction Deafness
Due to prolonged exposure to loud noises OR single explosive noises (which can tear stereocilia off of hair cells)
High-frequency deafness
-Buzzing, ringing, or clicking in the ears in the absence of auditory stimuli;
Tinnitus
Due to vestibulocochlear nerve damage; Possible effect of ototoxic medicines
Rare
Most commonly: Due to gradual loss of hair cells through life
Sensorineural Deafness
