PurposeHearing loss can lead to a number of disabilities and can reduce quality of life. Noise-induced hearing losses have become more common among adolescents due to increased exposure to personal music players. We, therefore, investigated the use of personal music player among Korean adolescents and the relationship between hearing threshold and usage pattern of portable music players.Materials and MethodsA total of 490 adolescents were interviewed personally regarding their use of portable music players, including the time and type of player and the type of headphone used. Pure tone audiometry was performed in each subject.ResultsOf the 490 subjects, 462 (94.3%) used personal music players and most of them have used the personal music player for 1-3 hours per day during 1-3 years. The most common type of portable music player was the MP3 player, and the most common type of headphone was the earphone (insert type). Significant elevations of hearing threshold were observed in males, in adolescents who had used portable music players for over 5 years, for those over 15 years in cumulative period and in those who had used earphones.ConclusionPortable music players can have a deleterious effect on hearing threshold in adolescents. To preserve hearing, adolescents should avoid using portable music players for long periods of time and should avoid using earphones.

The mean age of the 11 patients with multiple cranial neuropathy (6 men, 5 women) was 49.2 ± 19.4 years, although 7 were aged 50 years or older. Eight patients had right-sided and three had left-sided facial paralysis. The initial degree of facial paralysis was House-Brackmann (HB) grade IV in four patients (36.4%) and HB grade V in seven (63.6%). Six patients showed improvement in symptoms, whereas five (45.6%) showed no improvement. The recovery rates from facial paralysis in patients with and without multiple cranial neuropathy were 54.5% and 82.9%, respectively, and the complete recovery rates were 27.3% and 67.7%, respectively.

Although cochlear damage is believed to trigger the perception of tinnitus in the central auditory system, its pathophysiological mechanism is still unclear. We aimed to investigate the pathophysiology of tinnitus using psychoacoustic assessments of auditory spectral and temporal resolution and speech perception in noise. Human subjects with tinnitus and symmetric hearing thresholds were divided into three groups: nine unilateral tinnitus subjects with normal hearing thresholds (Group 1), 12 unilateral tinnitus subjects with hearing loss (HL; Group 2), and nine bilateral tinnitus subjects with HL. Fifteen normal-hearing subjects without tinnitus were also tested as a control group. Four different tests were administered: (1) the spectral-ripple discrimination (SRD) test, (2) the temporal modulation detection (TMD) test, (3) the Schroeder-phase discrimination (SPD) test, and (4) the speech recognition threshold (SRT) in noise test. There were no significant differences in SRD, TMD, and SPD between the tinnitus-affected ears (TEs) and non-tinnitus ears (NTEs) in Groups 1 and 2 (p Ͼ 0.05). In contrast, the TEs showed poorer SRTs than the NTEs in these two subject groups (p ϭ 0.022 and 0.049). No inferiority of spectral/temporal resolution in TEs compared with NTEs suggests that there may be no more outer hair cell (OHC) damage on the tinnitus side given that damaged OHCs are associated with broadening the auditory filters. The decoupling of the SRT results from the spectral/ temporal resolution data could imply that the occurrence of tinnitus does not depend upon the degree of damage to the OHCs, but rather upon different plastic changes in the central auditory system after cochlear damage.

The results of the present study indicate that ITD injection plus alprazolam medication is the best treatment choice for acute SIT within 3 months of development.

ObjectivesTo compare tinnitus patients who have normal hearing between 250 Hz and 8 kHz with normal controls with regard to the ability of each group to hear extended high-frequency pure tone thresholds.MethodsWe enrolled 18 tinnitus patients, each of whom had a threshold of HL <25 dB and threshold differences of <10 dB between ears at frequencies of 250 and 500 Hz and 1, 2, 4, and 8 kHz. We also enrolled age- and gender-matched normal volunteers (10 ears), for each patient. Extended high frequency pure tone audiometry was performed, and the mean hearing thresholds at 10, 12, 14, and 16 kHz of each tinnitus ear were compared with those of the 10 age- and sex-matched normal ears.ResultsOf the 18 patients with tinnitus, 12 had significantly increased hearing thresholds at more than one of the four high frequencies, compared with the normal group. When we assessed results according to frequency, we found that 8 patients had decreased hearing ability at 10 kHz, 10 at 12 kHz, 8 at 14 kHz, and 4 at 16 kHz.ConclusionSome patients with tinnitus who have normal hearing below 8 kHz have decreased hearing ability at extended high-frequencies. Thus, the proportion of patients with tinnitus who have normal hearing over the entire audible range is smaller than in previous reports.

Background and ObjectivesA recent study demonstrated that tinnitus could be eliminated by vagus nerve stimulation (VNS) paired with notched sounds in a rat tinnitus model. The aims of this clinical study were to investigate the effects and safety of transcutaneous VNS (tVNS) by patch-type electrode paired with notched music for treating chronic tinnitus.Subjects and MethodsThirty patients with refractory chronic tinnitus for >12 months were included in this study. A patch-type electrode was attached to the auricular concha of the patient's left ear and tVNS was performed for 30 min (pulse rate 25 Hz, pulse width 200 µs, and amplitude 1-10 mA) using a transcutaneous electric nerve stimulation eco2. During tVNS, the patients listened to notched music cleared of the frequency spectrum corresponding to the tinnitus with a 0.5 octave notch width.ResultsAfter 10 treatment sessions, 15/30 patients (50%) reported symptom relief in terms of a global improvement questionnaire. The mean tinnitus loudness (10-point scale) and the mean tinnitus awareness score (%) improved significantly from 6.32±2.06 to 5.16±1.52 and from 82.40±24.37% to 65.60±28.15%, respectively (both p<0.05). None of the patients had any specific side effects, such as changes in heart rate or blood pressure.ConclusionsThis study has demonstrated the feasibility and safety of tVNS paired with notched music therapy in patients with chronic tinnitus, with the use of a pad-type electrode attached to the auricular concha.

ObjectivesIn the present study, we investigated whether speech-related cognitive function and speech recognition ability under background noise in adults with hearing impairment are improved with the use of hearing aids.MethodsParticipants were recruited from the ENT Department of Eulji Hospital from September 2008 to July 2009. The study group comprised 18 participants (mean age, 69.5±8.3 years) with sensorineural hearing loss who were fitted with hearing aids, and the control group comprised 11 participants of equivalent age (mean age, 63.1±11.8 years) who were not fitted with hearing aids. All participants were assessed using the computerized Korean visual verbal learning test (VVLT) and words-in-noise (WIN) test prior to fitting of hearing aids for the study group and initially for the control group. Both groups were reassessed in both tests after 6 months. For each group, differences in the results between the two assessments were compared using the Friedman test.ResultsThere was no difference in mean age between the study group and control group. In the study group, total VVLT score (reflecting short-term memory) was significantly improved from before hearing aid use to 6 months after hearing aid use (P<0.05), and VVLT recognition score (reflecting learning ability) was also significantly improved from before hearing aid use to 6 months after hearing aid use (P<0.05), but there was no change in the control group. For VVLT latency score (reflecting efficiency of memory) and speech discrimination score in the WIN test, no statistically significant difference was found between the initial and 6-month assessments in the study group or in the control group (P>0.05).ConclusionThe speech-related cognitive function of individuals with hearing impairment improved after using hearing aids. This finding indicates that hearing aids may induce acclimatization of the central auditory system.

Background and ObjectivesTo compare the effectiveness of monitoring cisplatin-induced ototoxicity in adult patients using extended high-frequency pure-tone audiometry (EHF-PTA) or distortion-product otoacoustic emission (DP-OAE) and to evaluate the concurrence of ototoxicity and nephrotoxicity in cisplatin-treated patients.Subjects and MethodsEHF-PTA was measured at frequencies of 0.25, 0.5, 1, 2, 3, 4, 6, 8, 9, 11.2, 12.5, 14, 16, 18, and 20 kHz and DP-OAE at frequencies of 0.5, 0.75, 1, 1.5, 2, 3, 4, 6, and 8 kHz in cisplatin-treated patients (n=10). Baseline evaluations were made immediately before chemotherapy and additional tests were performed before each of six cycles of cisplatin treatment. Laboratory tests to monitor nephrotoxicity were included before every cycle of chemotherapy.ResultsFour of 10 patients showed threshold changes on EHF-PTA. Five of 10 patients showed reductions in DP-OAE, but one was a false-positive result. The results of EHF-PTA and DP-OAE were consistent in two patients. Only one patient displayed nephrotoxicity on laboratory tests after the third cycle.ConclusionsIn our study, the incidence rate of cisplatin-induced ototoxicity was 40% with EHF-PTA or DP-OAE. Although both EHF-PTA and DP-OAE showed the same sensitivity in detecting ototoxicity, they did not produce the same results in all patients. These two hearing tests could be used to complement one another. Clinicians should use both tests simultaneously in every cycle of chemotherapy to ensure the detection of ototoxicity.