Meniere's Disease, Diagnosis And Surgical Treatment

Meniere's disease, also called idiopathic endolymphatic hydrops, is a disorder of the inner ear. Although the cause is unknown, it probably results from an abnormality in the fluids of the inner ear. Meniere's disease is one of the most common causes of dizziness originating in the inner ear.The symptoms of Meniere's disease are episodic rotational vertigo (attacks of a spinning sensation),hearing loss, tinnitus (a roaring, buzzing,or ringing sound in the ear), and a sensation of fullness in the affected ear. Tinnitus and fullness of the ear in Meniere's disease may come and go with changes in hearing, occur during or just before attacks, or be constant.We should pay attention to the history of the frequency, duration, severity, and character of the attacks, the duration of hearing loss or whether it has been changing, and whether the patient have had tinnitus or fullness in either or both ears. We should aske whether there is history of syphilis, mumps, or other serious infections in the past, inflammations of the eye, an autoimmune disorder or allergy, or ear surgery in the past. And the patient's general health, such as whether he or she have diabetes, high blood pressure, high blood cholesterol, thyroid, neurologic or emotional disorders. Tests may be ordered to look for these problems in certain cases. When the history has been completed, some diagnostic tests will check the hearing and balance functions. They may include: For hearingAn audiometric examination (hearing test) typically indicates a sensory type of hearing loss in the affected ear. Speech discrimination (the patient's ability to distinguish between words like "sit" and "fit") is often diminished in the affected ear. For balanceAn ENG (electronystagmograph) may be performed to evaluate balance function.Rotational testing or balance platform,may also be performed to evaluate the balance system.Recommend: glycerol testOther testsElectrocochleography (ECoG) may indicate increased inner ear fluid pressure in somecases of Meniere's disease.The auditory brain stem response (ABR),a computerizedtest of the hearing nerves and brain pathways, computed tomography(CT) or,magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) may be needed to rule out a tumor occurring onthe hearing and balance nerve.Such tumors are rare, but they can cause symptomssimilar to Meniere's disease.If vertigo attacks are not controlled by conservative measures and are disabling, oneof the following surgical procedures might be recommended:1 endolymphatic shunt or decompression2 vestibular neurectomy3 labyrinthectomyWe are glad to see some surgical procedures new present.Do they work?...