Otology Flashcards
What frequency of tuning forks should one use to peroform Rinnes and Webers tests?
512Hz
What does a Weber’s test lateralising to the right mean?
A conductive hearing loss in the R ear
Or
A sensorineural hearing loss in the L ear
If you get a senorineural loss in the L ear where will Webers test lateralise to?
The pt will have better hearing in the R ear.
If Rinne’s test is positive then is BC>AC or is AC
AC it better than (>) BC.
This is normal
If Rinne’s test is negative what does this mean?
That BC is better than AC.
This is abnormal and indicates a conductive hearing loss
What causes a false negative Rinne’s test?
The ear you are testing has profound sensorineural hearing loss (i.e. its dead)
So when testing BC the other ear picks up the sound giving the picture that BC>AC however BC and AC from that ear will not actually occur as it is dead.
Do pure tone audiograms test BC or AC?
They test both.
How are the L and R ears BC and AC noted down on a pure tone audiogram?
R - AC –> O RED
R - BC –> [ RED
L - AC –> X BLUE
L - BC –> ] BLUE
Under what volume should normal pt be able to hear and at what frequencies
Normal hearing is to be able to hear:
All frequencies
At at least 20dB or less
What indicates normal age-related hearing loss (presbycusis)?
A sloping off of hearing above 4000hz
What does tympanometry measure?
The compliance/stiffness of the eardrum
What is tympanometry also known as?
Impedance audiometry
In tympanometry the probe has a number of channels, what are these?
A speaker to send the sound wave
A microphone to receive the sound wave
A device to vary the pressure
What is a Type B tympanogram?
A flat line
What is a Type C tympanogram?
A normal shape graph BUT further towards the Y-axis
What does a Type C tympanogram indicate?
The drum is retracted, as there is a negative pressure in the middle ear.
What does a Type B tympanogram indicate?
There is fluid in the middle ear
What can an excessively tall peak on a tympanogram indicate?
A hyper mobile drum
such as in ossicular discontinuration
What is presbyacusis?
the degenerative loss of hearing in old age (>50yrs)
What are the characteristics of presbyacusis?
Bilateral high frequency hearing loss
With or without tinnitus
How is presbyacusis treated?
Hearing aids
to help with hearing loss and mask tinnitus
What causes presbyacusis?
Atrophy of the outer hair cells in the cochlea
What is a cholesteatoma?
a cyst or sac
of keratinizing squamous epithelium
in the middle ear and/or mastoid process
Where do cholesteatomas most commonly occur?
in the attic aka epitympanic part of the middle ear
What are the sings and symptoms of cholesteatoma?
foul smelling discharge (if CSOM)
a conductive hearing loss
attic aural polyps (a proliferation of chronic inflammatory cells)
What bacteria is thought to cause cholesteatoma?
Pseudomonas
What are thought to predispose a pt to cholesteatoma?
genes i.e. congenital
What are the risks of cholesteatoma?
It can essentially erode anything including: (it takes years)
ossicles - 50db conductive hearing loss
lateral semicircular canal - vertigo
CN7 - facial palsy
cochlea - sensorineural heaing loss
roof of middle ear into brain - sepsis
sigmoid sinus - thrombosis
How is cholesteatoma treated?
Surgical removal
What are the types of otitis media?
Otitis media with effusion (sterile fluid aka glue ear)
Acute (suppurative) otitis media (has a suppurative fluid and is due to infection)
Chronic suppurative otitis media (CSOM)
What occurs if there are repeated attacks of acute otitis media?
The repeated attacks weaken the tympanic membrane.
This eventually causes perforation
which does not heal
This is now chronic suppurative otitis media (CSOM)
Which demographic commonly get otitis media?
Children with URTI (these track up and cause OME)
What does the infection cause in acute otits media?
The infection in the middle ear causes pus accumulation
This leads to pressure on the tympanic membrane, thus pain.
This can then rupture causing otorrhoea and reduction in otalgia.
What are the symptoms of AOM?
Otalgia
Otorrhoea (one perforated)
Conductive hearing loss
Pyrexia
What is the treatment for AOM?
antibiotics (amoxycillin + clavulanic acid = Augmentin)
analgesia
Myringotomy (tiny incision is created in the eardrum) if condition fails to resolve or is having serious side-effects
How must a perforated ear be managed?
It should be kept dry until healed.
What is otitis media with effusion colloquially known as?
Glue ear
What is the essential cause of otitis media with effusion (Glue ear)
Poor ventilation of the middle ear due to narrowing of the eustachian tube.
How common is glue ear and what is the normal prognosis?
75% of children will have it at some point
most resolve spontaneously