[Hearing and dementia: is there a link?] / Slukh i dementsiya: est' li svyaz'?

The review of literature considers the correlation between hearing loss and dementia. Hearing loss is one of the few potentially modifiable factors in terms of dementia prevention, and the research highlighted in this article confirms the need to continue studying this correlation to better understand the benefits of treating hearing loss in order to improve cognitive function. It should be kept in mind that hearing loss also has social consequences in the form of reduced daily activity, communication function, isolation, loss of independence, impaired ability to drive vehicles, and this once again confirms the importance of timely treatment of hearing loss. This article also addresses the problem of late diagnosis, lack of treatment and rehabilitation of hearing loss in elderly people.

[Hearing care aspects in universal face mask use during the COVID 19 pandemic]. / Motivirovannost' k slukhoprotezirovaniyu v usloviyakh masochnogo rezhima pri pandemii COVID-19.

BACKGROUND: Typical cloth and medical masks, which are mandatory to wear during the COVID 19 pandemic, create visual barrier, obscure linguistic and nonverbal communication and interaction. Ski-slope hearing loss patients often don't admit their auditory insufficiency and do not use hearing aids due to acceptable speech intelligibility by using visual access to the mouth and other potential facial cues. PURPOSE: To assess the impact of universal face medical masks in public places on motivation to using hearing aids of patients with ski-slope hearing loss. PATIENTS AND METHODS: All the 504 patients (18-65 years old), who applied for < hearing care assistance and for the first time bought hearing aid were included. 266 patients (group A) applied from June to November 2020, when wearing facial masks was mandatory; 238 patients (group B) applied from June to November 2019, when wearing facial masks wasn't required. In both groups patients, who fulfilled the following criteria, were selected: 1) binaural mild to severe sensorineural ski-slope hearing loss lasting more than 3 years; 2) no progression of hearing loss within the last 3 years; 3) pure tone audiometry <20 dB HL at 125-1000 Hz frequencies; 4) hearing care with mono- or binaural hearing aids with the receiver-in-the-canal open-type. Questionnaires were administered to eligible patients in group A to assess the motivational components of acquiring hearing aids. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION: In group A, 74 (28%) patients received hearing aids according to the inclusion criteria, and in group B, 46 (19%) patients received hearing aids (p=0.033). Significant factors determining hearing aid acquisition were lack of visual contact when wearing a mask, communication difficulties in noisy environments and lack of intelligibility in a concert hall or lecture. CONCLUSION: Patients' motivation to hearing care grows in mandatory wearing facial masks conditions during the COVID-19 pandemic leading to an increase in patients using hearing aids.

[Benign paroxysmal positional vertigo associated with trauma, middle and inner ear diseases]. / Dobrokachestvennoe paroksizmal'noe pozitsionnoe golovokruzhenie, assotsiirovannoe s travmaticheskim vozdeistviem, zabolevaniyami srednego i vnutrennego ukha.

OBJECTIVE: The aim of the study is to compare clinical symptoms and treatment of posttraumatic benign paroxysmal positional vertigo (BPPV), BPPV associated with middle and inner ear diseases and idiopathic BPPV (iBPPV). PATIENTS AND METHODS: 640 patients with BPPV of various canals were enrolled in the study. 455 (71.1%) patients had iBPPV, 185 (28.9%) had secondary BPPV. Among patients with secondary BPPV in 16 (2.5%) patients it was associated with Meniere's disease (MD), in 34 (5.3%) patients - with sudden sensorineural hearing loss (SSHL), in 14 (2.2%) patients - with vestibular neuritis (VN), in 19 (2.9%) patients - with acute and chronic otitis media (OM) and in 75 (11.7%) patients - with chronic sensorineural hearing loss (CSHL). Posttraumatic BPPV was observed in 27 (4.2%) patients. All patients were treated with repositioning maneuvers and observed for recurrences the following 3 years. RESULTS: IBPPV is the most frequent type in population and has the most favorable prognosis. Combined involvement of posterior and horizontal canals is more frequent in BPPV associated with MD, SSHL and OM in comparison with iBPPV (p<0.01). BPPV associated with BM, SSHL and VN is more resistant to treatment with repositioning maneuvers in comparison with iBPPV: successful treatment with one performed maneuver is more rarely and more follow-up visits to the doctor are needed (p<0.01). BPPV associated with MD has higher recurrence rate (p=0.04). The clinical course of BPPV associated with CSHL and posttraumatic BPPV is most similar to iBPPV.

[Presbyacusis]. / Presbiakuzis - aktual'naia problema stareiushchego naseleniia.

In the world, the spread of hearing loss due to age is an important socio-medical problem. Age-related hearing loss is the result of the biological process of aging of the tissue elements of the auditory analyzer. Changes in hearing develops by a complex of factors associated with both genetic, environmental and social aspects. Presbycusis is one of the causes of human cognitive disorders. Recent studies on hearing impairment prove a correlation with cognitive processes that increase the risk of dementia in the elderly. Timely rehabilitation of hearing with the use of hearing aids allows you to delay the processes of inhibition of cognitive function, and allows older people to prolong active longevity. Patients require consistent auditory and cognitive training for better socialization.

[Tinnitus - current trends and prospects]. / Sub''ektivnyi ushnoi shum: sovremennye tendentsii i perspektivy.

Tinnitus is described as the perception of any sound or noise in the absence of real acoustic stimulation. Numerous investigations have been tried for this potentially debilitating, heterogeneous symptom. The authors overview the current concepts of the management of the suffering tinnitus patients. The review contains modern views on the mechanisms of generation, etiology and pathogenesis of tinnitus. Classifications for practical management of patients are presented. The review of medical and physical methods of therapy and rehabilitation of a tinnitus patients given. The review includes the most clinically reliable and common methods of treatment and rehabilitation.

[Ramsay Hunt syndrome with hearing loss and vertigo]. / Sindrom Ramseia-Khanta s kokhleovestibulopatiei.

The article contains literature review on etiology, natural history and treatment of Ramsay Hunt syndrome. Differential diagnosis in case of 8th cranial nerve involvement is discussed. We present a case of the patient with Ramsay Hunt syndrome with hearing loss and vertigo is described. Clinical symptoms and diagnosis of sensorineural hearing loss and acute unilateral vestibulopathy are presented. The successful treatment of the patient resulted in complete facial nerve recovery, hearing improvement and partial recovery of vestibular function.

[Possibility of application Mexidol for the treatment of patients suffering from sensorineural hearing loss and cerebrovascular insufficiency]. / Perspektivy primeneniia preparata Meksidol dlia lecheniia bol'nykh, stradaiushchikh neirosensornoi tugoukhost'iu i tserebrovaskuliarnoi nedostatochnost'iu.

Sensorineural hearing loss can develop as a consequence of vascular pathology. The etiology and pathogenesis of chronic sensorineural hearing loss allow us to consider promising the use of neuroprotective drugs in the treatment regimen that can activate the function of the neural structures of the auditory pathway. Ethylmethylhydroxypyridine succinate, having complex pharmacological capabilities and a wide range of effects realized at the neural and vascular levels can be used in the treatment of hearing impairment and speech intelligibility.

[The peculiar features of the clinical course of Meniere's disease associated with benign paroxysmal positional vertigo]. / Osobennosti klinicheskogo techeniia bolezni Men'era, assotsiirovannoi s dobrokachestvennym paroksizmal'nym pozitsionnym golovokruzheniem.

AIM: The objective of the present study was to evaluate the frequency of occurrence and clinical features of vertigo spells in the patients presenting with Ménière's disease (MD) associated with benign paroxysmal positional vertigo (BPPV). METHODS: A total of 104 patients with MD were available for the observation. All of them underwent the comprehensive examination that included the audiological study and vestibular tests, such as the Dix-Hallpike test and the roll-test for BPPV diagnostics. A structured questionnaire was used to calculate the average number of vertigo spells per month during the period of 6 months and the mean duration of the vertigo spells; the presence or the absence of changes in hearing ability during the spells as well as the severity of vertigo were determined with the use of the 10-point visual analogue scale. RESULTS: The patients suffering from BPPV associated with Meniere's disease presented with the following clinical features which distinguished them from the patients with idiopathic BPPV (p<0.05): (1) a higher percentage of female patients; (2) a longer duration of clinical symptoms; (3) the frequent involvement of the horizontal semicircular canal; (4) a greater incidence of canal paresis; (5) more therapeutic sessions needed for the recovery in conjunction with a higher rate of recurrence. CONCLUSION: The frequency of association of MD and BPPV was estimated at 14.4%. Such association of MD was more frequently observed in the elderly patients (older than 60 years) (p<0.05). The clinical manifestations of the vertigo spells in the patients having MD associated with BPPV occurred with an enhanced frequency; their mean duration was relatively short due to the presence of both long and short positional vertigo attacks characterized by the absence of hearing changes during the spells and the equal severity of vertigo (p < 0,05).

[The specific microbiological and clinical features of acute otitis media]. / Mikrobiologicheskie i klinicheskie osobennosti ostrogo srednego otita.

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.

[The characteristics of broad-band tympanometry in the volunteers with the unaffected hearing]. / Pokazateli shirokopolosnoi timpanometrii u lits s normal'nym slukhom.

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.

[Pseudohypoacusis associated with Munchausen's syndrome]. / Psevdogipoakuziia pri sindrome Miunkhgauzena.

The authors describe a rare clinical case of psychogenic hearing loss in a female patient presenting Munchausen's syndrome with special reference to the objective and subjective methods designed to evaluate the hearing ability and used for diagnostics of this condition.

[Foreign bodies in the external auditory canal and tympanic cavity].

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.

[The specific clinical features of acute sensorineural loss of hearing associated with vertigo].

The objective of the present study was to estimate the prevalence of vertigo and to determine the type of the lesion of the vestibular analyzer in the patients presenting with acute sensorineural loss of hearing (ASNLH). The secondary objective was to evaluate the possibility of the restoration of the auditory thresholds. The results of the examination and treatment of 94 patients suffering from ASNLH are presented. It was shown that the development of acute sensorineural loss of hearing was accompanied by unilateral peripheral vestibulopathy in 22.3% of the patients. In 5.3% of these cases, dizziness could be attributed to benign paroxysmal positional vertigo and canalolythias is of the posterior semicircular canal on the side of hearing impairment. It is concluded that the presence of the clinical signs of lesions of the vestibular analyzer and peripheral vestibular dysfunction in the form of latent spontaneous nystagmus without gaze fixation and/or asymmetric nystagmus with unilateral weakness in the caloric test is a negative prognostic factor for the restoration of the auditory thresholds in the patients presenting with acute sensorineural loss of hearing.

[The otoneurological examination of a patient suffering from dizziness].

The up-to-date bedside otoneurological examination of the dizzy patients consists of a number of tests and procedures of paramount importance for the localization and diagnostics of the causes underlying dizziness. Recent progress in neurootology made it possible to improve the quality of physical examination and diagnostics; thereby, it promoted the choice of the most adequate treatment. The authors maintain that the modern otoneurological examination must include the following mandatory stages: the measurement of the head tilt and the eye position; the assessment of the presence and the character of nystagmus, oculomotor reactions (saccades, smooth pursuit movements, optokinetic reflex), and vestibular-ocular reflex; the performance of provocative tests and positioning maneuvers; posture and balance control estimation; evaluation of the hearing function.

[Sensorineural hearing impairment in combination with mycoplasma infection].

The objective of the present study was to elucidate the incidence of mycoplasma infection concomitant with sensorineural hearing impairment and its clinical manifestations with special reference to the methods for its diagnostics and treatment. The main method for the detection of mycoplasma infection is PCR in real time and the auxiliary one is the immunoenzymatic assay. The study revealed mycoplasma infection in 15 (13.9%) of the examined patients. The results of our investigations give evidence of the necessity to further study the clinical symptoms of mycoplasma infection associated with sensorineural hearing impairment and to search for the methods of the management of this condition.

[The ototoxic action of cisplatin on the middle ear].

The objective of the present study was to elucidate the mechanisms underlying the ototoxic action of cisplatin after its single administration using an experimental model (white mice). Short latency acoustically evoked potentials (SAEP) and distortion-product otoacoustic emissions (DPOAE) were recorded for the purpose. The results of the study confirm the possibility of using the proposed model for the estimation of the cisplatin-induced loss of hearing. It was shown that a single cisplatin dose causes hearing impairment in the mice within 7 days after its administration; with the maximum effect becoming apparent on day 30.

[Acoustic impedanceometry: the evolution of diagnostic possibilities].

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.