• Efficacy of acupuncture on brain perfusion and symptoms of tinnitus patients. • Acupuncture improved the Tinnitus Handicap Inventory scores in tinnitus patients. • No significant changes in brain perfusion were observed after 12 twice-weekly sessions. • Perfusion changes would reflect changes in neuronal function.

There was a difference in the latency of potentials N2 and P3 among the stimuli employed but no difference was observed for the P3 amplitude.

OBJETIVO: Comparar a ocorrência dos indicadores de risco para a deficiência auditiva infantil ao longo de quatro anos, em um Programa de Triagem Auditiva Neonatal. MÉTODOS: Foram pesquisados os prontuários de 382 recém nascidos prematuros nascidos no Hospital São Paulo, de 2000 a 2004. RESULTADOS: Em 2000, encontramos 5,9% de casos de antecedentes familiares/consangüinidade, a qual aumentou de forma estatisticamente significante para 13,6% em 2003. A ventilação mecânica aumentou de forma estatisticamente significante de 24,6% casos em 2000, para 40,2% em 2004. O número de convulsões em RN foi de 4,2% em 2000 para 9,8% em 2004, aumento estatisticamente significante. Encontramos 11,0% de casos de infecção congênita em 2000, o que caiu para 4,3% em 2003. No ano de 2002, houve apenas um caso de sífilis, sendo que a ocorrência destas doenças diminuiu nos últimos anos. O HPIV foi de 15,3% no ano 2000 para 5% em 2003, com redução estatisticamente significante. Os casos de malformação caíram de 3,4% no ano 2000 para 0,7% em 2003. Os casos de ototoxicidade diminuíram de forma estatisticamente significante de 43,2% em 2000 para 30,0% em 2003. CONCLUSÃO: A análise estatística revelou aumento significante da ocorrência dos antecedentes familiares para a deficiência auditiva, do uso de ventilação mecânica e das convulsões neonatais. Os casos de infecção congênita e hemorragia periintraventricular diminuíram estatisticamente do ano 2000 para 2004. Os casos de malformação, baixo peso e ototoxicidade variaram de forma aleatória entre os anos estudados. E alguns indicadores de risco se mantiveram sem alterações estatisticamente significantes.

the findings show that patients with vitiligo, particularly males, have a greater predisposition to cochlear dysfunction, especially in the right ear. As far as the suppression effect was concerned, there was a greater alteration in the female efferent system, particularly in the left ear. Hearing alterations did not vary as far as age is concerned, type of vitiligo and time of disease progression.

Tinnitus is characterized by the perception of sound in the absence of an external auditory stimulus. The network connectivity of auditory and non-auditory brain structures associated with emotion, memory and attention are functionally altered in debilitating tinnitus. Current studies suggest that tinnitus results from neuroplastic changes in the frontal and limbic temporal regions. The objective of this study was to use Single-Photon Emission Computed Tomography (SPECT) to evaluate changes in the cerebral blood flow in tinnitus patients with normal hearing compared with healthy controls. Methods: Twenty tinnitus patients with normal hearing and 17 healthy controls, matched for sex, age and years of education, were subjected to Single Photon Emission Computed Tomography using the radiotracer ethylenedicysteine diethyl ester, labeled with Technetium 99 m (99 mTc-ECD SPECT). The severity of tinnitus was assessed using the “Tinnitus Handicap Inventory” (THI). The images were processed and analyzed using “Statistical Parametric Mapping” (SPM8). Results: A significant increase in cerebral perfusion in the left parahippocampal gyrus (pFWE <0.05) was observed in patients with tinnitus compared with healthy controls. The average total THI score was 50.8+18.24, classified as moderate tinnitus. Conclusion: It was possible to identify significant changes in the limbic system of the brain perfusion in tinnitus patients with normal hearing, suggesting that central mechanisms, not specific to the auditory pathway, are involved in the pathophysiology of symptoms, even in the absence of clinically diagnosed peripheral changes.

A avaliação audiológica do lactente deve ser composta pela verificação das condições de orelha média (medidas de imitância acústica e otoscopia) e pela avaliação coclear (Emissões Otoacústicas). OBJETIVO: Verificar qual tom teste da timpanometria (226Hz ou 1000Hz) tem maior correlação com o exame otoscópico e com o resultado das Emissões Otoacústicas por estímulo transiente. MÉTODO: Realizou-se emissões otoacústicas nos 60 lactentes da amostra, com idade entre de zero e quatro meses. Foram distribuídos em dois grupos, sendo o grupo I 30 lactentes com EOA presente e o grupo II 30 lactentes com EOA ausente. Foram submetidos à timpanometria de múltiplas freqüências, com tom teste de 226Hz e 1000Hz e avaliação otoscópica. RESULTADOS: Na timpanometria, o tom teste de 1000Hz apresentou mais sensibilidade para identificar as alterações de orelha média. Nas crianças com curva timpanométrica dentro da normalidade, ambos os tons-teste (226 e 1000Hz) apresentaram alta especificidade. Todas as correlações foram significantes com o tom teste de 1000Hz. CONCLUSÃO: O tom teste de 1000Hz apresentou maior correlação estatisticamente significante com as EOA e com a avaliação otoscópica para lactentes de zero a quatro meses.

Introduction The research in long latency auditory evokes potentials (LLAEP) in newborns is recent because of the cortical structure maturation, but studies note that these potentials may be evidenced at this age and could be considered as indicators of cognitive development. Purpose To research the exogenous potentials in term and premature infants during their first month of life. Materials and Methods The sample consisted of 25 newborns, 15 term and 10 premature infants. The infants with gestational age under 37 weeks were considered premature. To evaluate the cortical potentials, the infants remained in natural sleep. The LLAEPs were researched binaurally, through insertion earphones, with frequent /ba/ and rare /ga/ speech stimuli in the intensity of 80 dB HL (decibel hearing level). The frequent stimuli presented a total of 80% of the presentations, and the rare, 20%. The data were statistically analyzed. Results The average gestational age of the term infants was 38.9 weeks (± 1.3) and for the premature group, 33.9 weeks (± 1.6). It was possible to observe only the potentials P1 and N1 in both groups, but there was no statistically significant difference for the latencies of the components P1 and N1 (p > 0.05) between the groups. Conclusion It was possible to observe the exogenous components P1 and N1 of the cortical potentials in both term and preterm newborns of no more than 1 month of age. However, there was no difference between the groups.

Objective To establish reference intervals for cognitive potential P300 latency using tone burst stimuli.Methods This study involved 28 participants aged between 18 and 59 years. P300 recordings were performed using a two-channel device (Masbe, Contronic). Electrode placement was as follows: Fpz (ground electrode), Cz (active electrode), M1 and M2 (reference electrodes). Intensity corresponded to 80 dB HL and frequent and rare stimulus frequencies to 1,000Hz and 2,000Hz, respectively. Stimuli were delivered binaurally.Results Mean age of participants was 35 years. Average P300 latency was 305ms.Conclusion Maximum acceptable P300 latency values of 362.5ms (305 + 2SD 28.75) were determined for adults aged 18 to 59 years using the protocol described.