ENT & OPHTHALMOLOGY Flashcards
What are some causes for conductive hearing loss?
- External canal obstruction = wax, pus, foreign body
- TM perforation = trauma, barotrauma, infection
- Ossicle defects = otosclerosis, infection, trauma
- Inadequate eustachian tube ventilation of the middle ear = effusion 2ndary to nasopahryngeal carcinoma
What are some causes of sensorineural hearing loss?
- Drugs - streptomycin, gentamycin, hydroxychloroquine
- Post-infective = meningitis, measles, mumps, flu, herpes, syphillis
- Meniere’s disease
- Cochlear valvular disease
- Acoustic neuroma
- Trauma
- Presbycusis
Describe briefly, what is the difference in terms of sound conduction between conductive, sensorineural + mixed hearing loss.
- Sensorineural both air + bone conduction are reduced
- In conductive, only AC impaired
- in mixed, both AC + BC are affected, often with AC being worse
What is otosclerosis? Who does it tend to affect?
New bone formation around the stapes, which leads to fixation + consequent conductive hearing loss
- autosomal dominant
- typically manifests between 20-40yrs
What are the clinical features you would expect in a patient with otosclerosis?
- bilateral conductive deafness
- hearing IMPROVES when background noise present
- worsened by pregnancy/menopause/menstruation
- tinnitus
- mild transient vertigo
- positive FHx
How do you manage a patient with otosclerosis?
- Hearing aid - including BAHA
- Surgery - stapes implant
- Cochlear implant
What are the typical clinical features that a patient with presbyacusis will present with?
Tend to be over 65yrs
- B/L hearing loss
- Speech is difficult to understand, they struggle to use telephone + having to turn up volume of TV
- hearing is WORSE in noisy environments
- loss of directionality of sound
- slow onset and may have associated tinnitus
What investigations would you perform in a patient with presbyacusis?
- OTOSCOPY - R/O otosclerosis, cholesteatoma, conductive hearing loss
- TYMAPNOMETRY - normal middle ear function
- AUDIOMETRY - B/L sensorineural pattern
How is prebyacusis managed?
Hearing aid
What are the clinical features of otitis externa?
- watery discharge
- itch
- pain + tragal tenderness
- on otoscopy = red, swollen, eczematous ear canal
When would you consider doing an ear swab in a patient with otitis externa?
- Treatment fails
- OE chronic or recurrent
- Topical treatment cannot be delivered (e.g. EAC occluded)
- Infection has spread beyond EAC
- Infection is severe enough to require oral Abx
How do you manage a patient with otitis externa?
- Manage aggravating/precipitating factors
- Consider cleaning EAC if wax/debris blocks topical med application
- Consider topical abx with or without steroid
- e.g. ciprofloxacin with dexamethasone
- use for at least 7 days. If symptoms persist can use for up to 14 days - Consider earwick insertion if extensive swelling of EAC
- Oral abx rarely indicated
- clarithromycin or flucloxacillin
What self-care advice should you give pts with otitis externa?
- Avoid damage to EAC - do NOT use cotton ear buds
- Keep the ears clean + dry
- Ensure pre-disposing conditions are controlled e.g. eczema, dermatitis
What patients are at risk of developing malignant/necrotizing otitis externa? Why is it life-threatening
Immunocompromised => 90% of pats are diabetics
- Life-threatening as can cause temporal bone osteomyelitis
What investigation should be performed in suspected necrotizing OE?
CT
How is malignant/necrotizing OE managed?
Non-resolving OE with worsening pain = urgent ENT referral
- Surgical debridement
- IB Abx
- Specific immunoglobulins
What are some risk factors for developing otitis media?
- bottle fed
- passive smoking
- dummy use
- asthma
- cleft-palate
- GORD
- raised BMI
How does acute otitis media present? Including what would be seen on ototscopy
- Usually occurs in children post-URTI
- Rapid onset ear pain, with child tugging at ear
- Irritable, fever, vomiting
- purulent discharge if drum perforates
O/E:
- bulging red TM
- loss of normal landmarks
- may have a fluid level
How is acute otitis media managed?
- Advise that the usual duration is about 3 days but can be up to 1-week
- Optimize analgesia e.g. regular ibuprofen + paracetamol
- Antibiotics - amoxicillin or clarithromycin
- only use if systemically unwell
When would you consider admitting someone with acute otitis media?
- Severe systemic infection
- Suspected acute complications = meningitis, mastoiditis, intracranial abscess, sinus thrombosis, facial nerve palsy
- children under 3-months with a fever or over 38 degrees
What are risk factors for developing OME (glue ear)?
- Downs syndrome
- Cleft palate
- Cystic fibrosis
- Primary ciliary dyskinesia
Allergic rhinitis
If otitis media with effusion occurs in an adult, what must be ruled out?
Post-nasal space tumour
What are the clinical features you would expect in a pt with OME (glue ear)?
HEARING LOSS
- inattention at school
- poor speech development
- hearing impairment
O/E:
- retracted dull TM
- fluid level present
- normal TM does NOT rule out OME
Why do we worry about persistent, foul smelling discharge?
?Cholesteatoma
- urgent ENT referral required
What investigations should be performed in patients with OME?
- Tympanometry = flat tympanogram in OME
2. Audiometry = conductive hearing deficit
How do you manage patients with OME?
- Active observation for 6-12 weeks
- spontaneous resolution is common
- include 2 hearing tests
- consider ENT referral - Autoinflation
- balloon in young kids
- valsalva in older children - Myringotomy
- insertion of grommets. They last about 10 months. Be aware of risk of infection
What is the criteria for ENT referral in patients with OME? (HINT there are 6)
- Hearing loss associated with impact on childs development/education
- Hearing loss is severe = 2ww to r/o sensorineural deafness
- Significant hearing loss on 2 or more occasions
- Tympanic membrane structurally abnormal
- Persistent smelly discharge
- Child has downs or cleft palate
What are the features of chronic suppurative otitis media?
- PAINLESS discharge + hearing loss for over 2 weeks
- Hx of AOM, ear trauma or glue ear + grommet insertion
- Hx of allergy + URTI
- Tinnitus/sensation of pressure in ear
O/E = TM perforation
What are the important red flag symptoms in a patient with CSOM which may suggest serious complications?
Mastoiditis or intracranial infection:
- Headache
- Vertigo
- Labyrinthitis
- Paralysis
- Nystagmus
- Fever
- Swelling/tender behind ear
How is CSOM diagnosed?
Must refer to ENT as they are to make diagnosis
How is CSOM managed?
- Topical/systemic Abx
- Surgery (myringoplasty)
- persistent discharge
- mastoiditis
- cholesteatoma
What is a cholesteatoma?
Locally destructive expansion of stratified squamous epithelium within the middle ear
What are the typical clinical features of a cholesteatoma?
PERSISTENT FOUL SMELLING DISCHARGE
- Headache, pain
- Conductive hearing loss
- CN involvement (= disease progression) e.g. vertigo, sensorineural hearing loss, meningitis, facial paralysis
When would you urgently refer or semi-urgently refer patients with suspected cholesteatoma?
URGENT:
- with suspected cholesteatoma AND a serious complication including; facial nerve palsy or vertigo, other neurological signs (incl. pain) or signs that could be associated with the development of an intracranial abscess or meningitis
SEMI-URGENT:
- suspected cholesteatoma with NO serious complications
How is a suspected cholesteatoma investigated?
- Audiology assessment
2. CT head - for complications
How do you manage pts with cholesteatoma?
- Mastoidectomy
2. Steroid + Abx if infection
What are the clinical features of mastoiditis?
- fever (pt is usually very unwell)
- Protruding auricle
- Tender, swollen + red mastoid
- May have a hx of recurrent OM
What investigation should be done in suspected mastoiditis?
CT head
How do you manage pts with mastoiditis?
- IV Abx
2. Myringotomy with or without mastoidectomy
How do you manage Ramsay-Hunt syndrome?
Give oral aciclovir + prednisolone within first 72h
What are the 3 red flag symptoms in a patient presenting with nasal blockage?
- Unilateral
- Persistent despite 3 months treatment
- Epistaxis
What are some predipsosing factors to developing rhinosinusitis?
- Atopy
- Nasal obstruction - septal deviation or polyps
- Recent local infection - rhinitis, dental extraction
- Swimming/diving
- Smoking
What are the clinical features of acute sinusitis?
- Facial pain
- typically frontal pressure worse on bending forwards - Discharge
- from nose. Thick + purulent - Nasal obstruction/congestion
- Anosmia
How do you manage patients with acute sinusitis?
- Analgesia
- Intranasal decongestants or nasal saline
- Intranasal steroids if symptoms present for more than 10-days
- Phenoxymethylpenicillin if symptoms are severe
What are the clinical features of chronic rhinosinusitis WITH polyps?
- Watery anterior rhinorrhoea
- bilateral nasal obstruction
- purulent post-nasal drip
- cheek pain
- mouth breathing
- snoring
What investigations should you perform in patients with suspected chronic rhinosinusitis WITH polyps?
- Nasal endoscopy
- Anterior rhinoscopy
- RAST
- CT sinuses
- Biopsy
How do you manage patients with chronic rhinosinusitis WITH polyps?
- Topical nasal steroid - betamethasone 0.1%
- Short course of prednisolone
- Nasal saline irrigation
- Antibiotics if evidence of infection
- Antihistamine + allergen avoidance
- Endoscopic sinus surgery
- advise NOT to blow nose + continue steroids
- SEs = CSF leak, optic nerve damage
What are the clinical features of chronic rhinosinusitis WITHOUT polpys?
- B/L intermittent nasal blockage
- sneezing
- rhinorrhoea