EAR Flashcards
AUDIOMETRY
Sound stimulus consists of a pure or musical tone (the
louder the tone before the patient perceives it, the greater
the hearing loss)
PURE-TONE
AUDIOMETRY
Spoken word is used to determine the ability to hear and
discriminate sounds and word
SPEECH
_ decibels are normal
50 - 60
decibels for whisper
30
Measures middle ear muscle reflex to sound
stimulation and compliance of the tympanic
membrane by changing the air pressure in a sealed
ear canal.
Compliance is impaired with middle ear disease.
TYMPANOGRAM
A detectable electrical potential from cranial nerve VIII and the ascending auditory pathways of the brain stem in response to sound stimulation.
Electrodes are placed on the pt’s forehead.
Acoustic stimuli (eg, clicks) are made in the ear.
Can determine at which decibel level a patient hears and whether there are any impairments along the nerve pathways
(eg, tumor).
AUDITORY BRAINSTEM RESPONSE
Measurement and graphic recording of the changes in electrical potentials created by eye
movements (nystagmus)
Used to assess the oculomotor and vestibular systems and their corresponding interaction.
It helps diagnose Meniere’s disease and tumors of the internal auditory canal or posterior fossa.
Any vestibular suppressants, such as sedatives, tranquilizers, antihistamines, and alcohol,are
withheld for 24 hours before testing.
ELECTRONYSTAGMOGRAPHY
Evaluate if a person’s vertigo is becoming worse or to evaluate the person’s response to
treatment.
Pt stands on a platform, surrounded by a screen,
and different conditions such as a moving platform with a moving screen or a stationary
platform with a moving screen are presented.
The responses from the patient on six different conditions are measured and indicate which of
the anatomic systems may be impaired.
Any vestibular suppressants, such as sedatives,
tranquilizers, antihistamines, and alcohol, are withheld for 24 hours before testing.
PLATFORM POSTUROGRAPHY
A rotary chair is used to assess the vestibuloocularsystem
Helps identify disease (eg, Ménière’s disease and
tumors of the auditory canal) and evaluate the
course of recovery.
Any vestibular suppressants,
SINUSOIDAL HARMONIC ACCELERATION
With endoscopes, ear can be examined by an
endoscopist.
Evaluate suspected perilymphaticfistula and newonset
conductive hearing loss.
The tympanic membrane is anesthetized topically for
about 10 minutes before the procedure.
External auditory canal is irrigated with sterile normal
saline solution.
With the aid of a microscope, a tympanotomy is
created with a laser beam or a myringotomy knife, so
that the endoscope can be inserted into the middle
MIDDLE EAR ENDOSCOPY
Increases with age; 50% over the age of 70— presbycusis
Risk factors include exposure to excessive noise levels
Types
Conductive; caused by external of middle ear problem
Sensorineural; caused by damage to the cochlea or vestibulocochlear nerve
Mixed; both conductive and
sensorineural
Functional (psychogenic); caused by emotional problem
HEARING LOSS
if the eardrum is perforated, water can enter
the middle ear, producing acute vertigo and
infection.
if the eardrum is perforated, water can enter
the middle ear, producing acute vertigo and
infection.
Swimmer’s ear
Trauma to the skin of the ear canal, bacterial or
fungal infections are most frequently
encountered.
Staphylococcus aureus and Pseudomonas. The
most common fungus isolated in both normal
and infected ears is Aspergillus.
EXTERNAL OTITIS
GAPPING EARRING PUNCTURE
Results from wearing heavy pierced earrings for a
long time or after an infection, or as a reaction from
the earring or impurities in the earring.
GAPPING EARRING PUNCTURE
(surgical repair of the tympanic
membrane)
Tympanoplasty
Most commonly seen in children.
Acute infection of the middle ear usually lasting
less than 6 weeks.
Streptococcus pneumoniae, Haemophilus
influenzae, and Moraxella catarrhalis, which enter
the middle ear after EUSTACHIAN TUBE
dysfunction caused by obstruction related to
URTI
ACUTE OTITIS MEDIA (AOM)
Abnormal inner ear fluid balance caused by a
malabsorption in the endolymphatic sac or a
blockage in the endolymphatic duct.
More common in adults, beginning between 20 and
60 years.
Affects men and women, and it occurs bilaterally in
about 20% of patients.
Positive family history of the disease.
Ménière’s disease
Brief period of incapacitating vertigo that occurs
when pt’shead is changed with respect to gravity,
typically by placing the head back with the
affected ear turned down.
Usually for hours to
BENIGN PAROXYSMAL POSITIONAL
VERTIGO
Associated with hearing loss.
May range from mild to severe.
Roaring, buzzing, or hissing sound in one or both
ears.
TINNITUS
Inflammation of the inner ear, can be bacterial or
viral in origin.
Sometimes occurs as a complication of otitis
media.
Affects hearing and balance.
LABYRINTHITIS
Slow-growing, benign tumors of cranial nerve VIII
Most acoustic tumors arise within the internal
auditory canal and extend into the cerebellopontine
angle to press on the brain stem, possibly destroying
the vestibular nerve.
ACOUSTIC NEUROMAS
