ENT surgery Flashcards
What is the most common cause of lower motor neuron facial nerve paralysis?
What are the classic symptoms?
Treatments?
Prognosis?
Bells Palsy - usually sudden unilateral onset, usually after an URI. thought to be a reactivation of latent HSV1 infection
Hyperacusis - everything sounds loud because the stapedius muscle in the ear is paralyzed.
Most cases resolve spontaneously in about 1 month, although some have permanent sequelae.
PO prednisone and antivirals (valacyclovir, acyclovir) may improve outcomes and lessen duration of symptoms.
What are other causes of LMN facial nerve paralysis? 7
- Herpes infection (Ramsay Hunt syndrome), which commonly involves CN 8. Look for vesicles on the pinna and inside the ear; encephalitis or meningitis may be present.
- Lyme disease
- Stroke
- Middle ear or mastoid infection
- Meningitis
- Temporal bone fracture (Battle sign and/or bleeding from ear)
- Tumor, classically an acoustic schwannoma (i.e., neuroma) of the cerebellopontine angle
What are the common causes of hearing loss? (lots)
- Aging (presbyacusis) - most common
- Prolonged/intense exposure to loud noises
- Congenital ToRCH (toxoplasmosis, others, rubella, cytomegalovirus, herpes virus).
-
Ménière disease (+severe vertigo, tinnitus, N/V)
- treat acute episodes w/ benzodiazepines, anticholinergics [scopolamine], and antihistamines [meclizine or dimenhydrinate]
- diuretics are often used for ongoing treatment
- surgery may be necessary for refractory cases
- Drugs (aminoglycosides, aspirin, quinine, loop diuretics, cisplatin).
- Tumor (classically acoustic neuroma)
- Labyrinthitis (may be viral or extend from meningitis or otitis media).
- Diabetes
- Hypothyroidism
- Multiple sclerosis
- Sarcoidosis
- Pseudotumor cerebri (increased intracranial pressure)
What is the usual cause of sudden deafness?
How are these patients treated?
Prognosis?
Sudden sensorineural hearing loss (SSNHL)
- idiopathic in most cases
- usually unilateral
- tinnitus is present in 90% of cases
- occurs over hours ( < 72 hours)
Treatment: steroids
Prognosis: 2/3 recover over 2 weeks, although the resolution is often not complete
What is the most common cause of acquired hearing loss in children?
Bacterial meningitis.
All children should receive formal hearing testing after a bout of meningitis.
What are the common causes of vertigo?
can arise from a CN8 lesion that cause hearing loss
- Meniere disease (due to ∆volume/composition of inner ear fluid)
- tumor
- infection
- MS
BPPV (induced via certain head positions, nystagmus, ø hearing loss)
How is a deviated nasal septum treated in patients with recurrent sinusitis?
surgical correction
What are the three common causes of rhinitis?
Viral
allergic
bacterial
How do you recognize and treat viral rhinitis (common cold)?
What can cause viral rhinitis?
treatment is symptomatic
Vasoconstrictors (phenylephrine) can be used for short-term symptomatic relief, but they may cause rebound congestion when discontinued
causes: rhinovirus (most common), influenza, parainfluenza, coxsackie virus, adenovirus, RSV, coronavirus, or echovirus.
How do you recognize and treat allergic rhinitis?
symptoms: seasonal flare-ups, boggy/bluish turbinates, onset before 20yo, nasal polyps, sneezing, pruritus, conjunctivitis, wheezing or asthma, eczema, (+) family hx, eosinophils in nasal mucous, and elevated IgE
diagnose: skin test
treatment: avoid known antigens, antihistamine, nasal steroids, and/or cromolyn in more severe cases; desensitization
What causes bacterial rhinitis? How does it present?
How is it diagnosed and treated?
culprits: Group A streptococci, pneumococci, or staphylococci
symptoms: coexisting sore throat, fever, and tonsillar exudate
diagnosis: strep throat cultures
treatment: antibiotics
What causes nosebleeds?
- trauma (nose-picking)
- nasopharyngeal angiofibroma (tumor in adolescent boys w/o history of trauma or blood dyscrasia)
- leukemia (typically in children with associated fever and anemia)
True or false: A neck mass is more likely to be benign in a child than in an adult.
TRUE
What are the common causes of a neck mass?
CHILDREN
- thyroglossal duct cysts - midline, elevates with tongue protrusion
- branchial cleft cysts - lateral; often become infected
- cystic hygroma - aka lymphangioma; benign, associated with Turners and treated with surgical resection
- cervical lymphadenitis - due to streptococcal pharyngitis, EBV, cat-scratch disease, or mycobacterial infection (scrofula)
- malignancy - leukemia or lymphoma may present with cervical lymphadenopathy
ADULTS
- malignancy - either lymphadenopathy from a 1˚ (lymphoma, thyroid), metastatic (usually squamous cell carcinoma) neoplasm
Describe the workup for an unknown cancer in the neck.
Triple endoscopy with triple biopsy:
biopsy of nasopharynx, palatine tonsils, and base of the tongue as well as laryngoscopy, bronchoscopy, and esophagoscopy