Ears Flashcards
What is Otalgia? What causes it
Ear pain, caused by ear disease or may be caused from problems with teeth or oropharynx
What is the reason for asking if patient has cold symptoms or sore throats accompanying their earache
A virus/bacterium that causes upper respiratory tract infection may migrate up the eustachian tube to involve middle ear
What can being hit on the ear/ side of head or a sports injury do to cause an earache
Trauma may rupture the eardrum
What do we ask to assess coping strategies
What have you tried in order to relieve the pain
What could a history of chronic ear problems suggest?
Possible sequelae ( a condition that is consequential of a previous disease)
Repeated ear infections in childhood can lead to
progressive hearing loss
What is tympanoplasty
The insertion of tubes into the ear
What is otorrhea? What does it suggest
- Discharge from the ears
- Suggest infection of canal or perforated eardrum
What is external otitis?
purulent, sanguineous or water discharge from ears
What is acute otitis media with perforation
purulent discharge
What is Cholesteatoma?
dirty yellow or grey discharge with foul odour
What could the relationship between ear pain and discharge mean?
With perforation, ear pain occurs first and stops with a popping sensation, then drainage occurs
Presbycusis causes ______ hearing loss, trauma causes ____ hearing loss
gradual, sudden
What is otosclerosis?
Abnormal bone growth near middle ear
When does otosclerosis usually occur? How is it diagnosed?
- during second/third decade
- On basis of symptoms of conductive hearing loss
How is conductive hearing loss caused?
Fixation of stapes (bone in inner ear)
The amount of hearing loss in conductive hearing loss is directly related to…?
the degree of immobilization of the stapedial footplate
Why would you ask a patient what situations they notice their loss of hearing
Because loss is usually more apparent when competition from background noise is present
What is recruitment?
a condition in which loss is marked when sound is initially at low intensity but actually becomes painful when repeated loudly
Why would we ask our patient if sounds seem hollow, as if under water
Hearing loss can be caused by expansion of cerumen and impaction
Why would we be asking about environmental factors in regards to hearing loss
Old trauma to hearing can we unnoticed initially but later can result in hearing loss
What is tinnitus? When is it hear?
Ringing noise in ears, sometimes accompanies hearing loss disorders
Why do we ask about medications when talking about the ear?
Many medications have ototoxic sequelae
What are some medications with oxotoxic sequelae?
aspirin, aminoglysosides, ethacrynic acid, furosemide, local anaesthetic, etc
What causes vertigo?
Dysfunctioning of the labyrinth
What is the difference between subjective and objective vertigo?
Objective: person feels the room is spinning
Subjective: person feels as they are spinning
Why would we ask a patient HOW they clean their ears?
Could’ve caused trauma from invasion like Qtip (can cause impaction of cerumen causing hearing loss
