ABSTRACT
Background and Objectives@#With the growing acknowledgment of age-related vestibular impairments, consensus diagnostic criteria for presbyvestibulopathy (PVP) have been recently published. The PVP criteria retains its objectivity with video head impulse test (vHIT), rotatory chair test (RCT) and caloric test. These objective tests share testing principles, but targeted frequencies vary across the tests. The PVP criteria are applicable for subjects of age over 60. However, there are different age cut-offs for older male in different areas. The purpose of the present study was to explore whether the PVP diagnostic criteria were appropriate for early elderly (Eel) patients and to identify the most sensitive test for age-related loss of vestibular function.Subjects and Method Eligible patients, aged 60 years or older, complained of dizziness for at least 3 weeks, and have undergone at least one of the followings: vHIT, RCT, or caloric test. We selected two groups based on age: the Eel group (aged >60 years but <65 years) and the late elderly (Lel) group (aged ≥75 years). @*Results@#The vestibulo-ocular reflex (VOR) gains differed significantly between the Eel and Lel groups for vHIT and caloric gain test. No Eel patient met the PVP criteria but 26.1% of Lel patients met the criteria for vHIT, and the proportions of such patients in the two groups differed significantly. @*Conclusion@#Eel subjects could be considered to differ from Lel subjects. Given the significance of both averages, VOR difference and the proportional difference in terms of meeting the PVP criteria and vHIT may be optimal when evaluating age-related changes.
ABSTRACT
Background and Objectives@#This study aimed to evaluate the clinical features and the clinical factors associated with prognosis of sudden sensorineural hearing loss (SSNHL) in diabetic patients. @*Subjects and Methods@#Forty-nine diabetic with unilateral SSNHL were retrospectively included. All patients received systemic high dose steroid therapy within one month after onset and had more than one month of follow-up audiogram. The basic characteristics of the patients, initial and follow-up audiograms, laboratory data, and methods of steroid treatment were collected. @*Results@#Compared to reference values in healthy subjects, 79%, 55%, and 45% of the patients had higher values of mean neutrophil-lymphocyte ratio (NLR), platelet-lymphocyte ratio (PLR), and lymphocyte-monocyte ratio (LMR), respectively. Older patients had significantly less degree of hearing loss, but they also had significantly worse hearing thresholds in the unaffected ear. After steroid treatment, less than half patients (47%) showed hearing recovery. Simultaneous intratympanic dexamethasone (ITD) injections with systemic steroid did not confer an additional hearing gain or an earlier recovery rate in diabetic patients with SSNHL. In the multivariate analysis, initial hearing thresholds of affected ear and timing of steroid treatment were significantly associated with hearing prognosis in diabetic patients with SSNHL. @*Conclusions@#Diabetic patients with SSNHL tended to have increased NLR, LMR, and PLR, which are reported to be associated with microvascular angiopathy. Simultaneous ITD injections to improve hearing recovery in diabetic patients with SSNHL seems unnecessary.
ABSTRACT
A 50-year-old woman visited the hospital with persistent watery rhinorrhea which she had for 2 months. Endoscopic examination revealed a mass in the right nasal cavity and rdiological findings revealed a bony defect on the lateral wall of the sphenoid sinus associated with the protrusion of the mass lesion. Endoscopic skull base reconstruction was performed via transpterygoid approach, including a watertight closure of the dural defect with both underlay and overlay repairs. Cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) leakage persisted after reconstruction. The right lateral lamella was identified as a secondary CSF leakage site. CSF leakage is common among patients with meningoencephalocele. However, a secondary CSF leakage accompanied with meningoencephalocele in other areas is uncommon. The present patient experienced CSF leakage from multiple sites—one associated with the original meningoencephalocele and another from a secondary defect at the skull base. This complication is rare in clinical practice. Here, we describe this rare case with a brief literature review.