ABSTRACT
The objective of the present study was to elucidate the specific features of the clinical course of acute otitis media as well as the peculiarities of the vestibular function and the microbial paysage associated with this pathological condition under the present-day conditions. The study included 135 patients presenting with acute otitis media (AOM) at different stages of the disease. The discharge obtained from the tympanic cavity of all the patients was examined with the use of polymerase chain reaction in real time, audiological and vestibulogical methods. The distinctive features of acute otitis medium associated with Streptococcus pneumoniae infection were found to be the intense pain syndrome with the symptoms of intoxication, well apparent inflammatory changes in the tympanic membrane as revealed by otoscopy, the increased frequency of sensorineural impairment of hearing, and the characteristic type B tympanometric curve. Typical of AOM associated with Haemophilus influenza infection are the mild pain syndrome, weak changes in the tympanic membrane as revealed by otoscopy, conductive hearing loss, and the type C tympanometric curve.
Subject(s)
Earache , Hearing Loss, Sensorineural , Otitis Media , Pneumococcal Infections , Acute Disease , Adult , Audiometry/methods , Earache/diagnosis , Earache/etiology , Female , Hearing Loss, Sensorineural/diagnosis , Hearing Loss, Sensorineural/etiology , Hearing Loss, Sensorineural/physiopathology , Humans , Male , Otitis Media/diagnosis , Otitis Media/microbiology , Otitis Media/physiopathology , Patient Acuity , Pneumococcal Infections/diagnosis , Pneumococcal Infections/physiopathology , Streptococcus pneumoniae/isolation & purification , Vestibular Function Tests/methodsABSTRACT
AIM: The objective of the present work was to elucidate the characteristics of broad-band tympanometry in the healthy subjects with the unaffected hearing ability. The study involved 54 volunteers (27 men and 27 women) at the age from 21 to 55 years exhibiting no pathologic changes in the ear system as confirmed by the tone threshold audiometry, otoacoustic emission, tympaometry at a frequency of 226 Hz, and reflexometry. All the participants of the study underwent absorbance measurements by broad-band tympanometry within the frequency range from 226 to 8,000 Hz at an ambient pressure. Five parameters have been detected which reflected the major characteristics of the absorbance curve, such as the maximum sound power absorbance ratio; the frequency at which the ear structures absorbed the maximum sound power; the frequency at which the absorbance ratio bounces off the plateau; the frequency at which the absorbance ratio plummets to plateau; and the frequency range within which the absorbance ratio underwent the most pronounced changes. The results obtained in the present study give evidence of response stability and the absence of the statistically significant differences in the absorbance parameters between the men and women obtained by their analysis for the ipsilateral and contralateral ears.
Subject(s)
Acoustic Impedance Tests , Hearing/physiology , Acoustic Impedance Tests/methods , Acoustic Impedance Tests/standards , Adult , Female , Healthy Volunteers , Humans , Male , Middle Aged , Reference ValuesABSTRACT
The rare clinical case of a patient with chronic otitis media and foreign body in the middle ear - a micro earphone in the tympanic cavity - is described in this article. The diagnostics, possible complications, and surgical treatment are discussed.
Subject(s)
Ear Canal , Ear, Middle , Foreign-Body Migration , Foreign-Body Reaction , Otologic Surgical Procedures/methods , Ear Canal/diagnostic imaging , Ear Canal/surgery , Ear, Middle/diagnostic imaging , Ear, Middle/surgery , Foreign-Body Migration/diagnosis , Foreign-Body Migration/etiology , Foreign-Body Migration/physiopathology , Foreign-Body Migration/surgery , Foreign-Body Reaction/diagnosis , Foreign-Body Reaction/etiology , Foreign-Body Reaction/physiopathology , Foreign-Body Reaction/surgery , Hearing Loss/diagnosis , Hearing Loss/etiology , Humans , Male , Radiography , Recovery of Function , Treatment Outcome , Young AdultABSTRACT
The present review of the literature reports the materials concerning the application of the acoustic impedance measurements of normal ears and pathologically charged organs of hearing that are important for the differential diagnostics and monitoring of the hearing system condition during the conservative and surgical treatment.