Hearing and vestibular functions after plugging surgery for the posterior semicircular canal.
CONCLUSIONS
Results of audiometry, caloric testing and vestibular evoked myogenic potential (VEMP) testing were hardly influenced by plugging surgery.


OBJECTIVE
To evaluate the influence of surgical plugging of the posterior semicircular canal on inner ear function in patients with benign paroxysmal positional vertigo (BPPV).


METHODS
The subjects were five consecutive patients with intractable BPPV who underwent plugging surgery. The following functions of the inner ear were examined before and 6 months after surgery. Cochlea function was evaluated by the average hearing level of three frequencies (500, 1000 and 2000 Hz), that of the semicircular canal by canal paresis percent (CP%) in caloric testing and that of the otolith by the left-right difference ratio on VEMP testing.


RESULTS
Positional vertigo was resolved in all patients. One subject was completely deaf before and after surgery. The average hearing level did not change more than 10 dB after surgery in the other four cases. CP% did not worsen more than 10% in any case. The VEMP results after surgery did not change more than 10% from before surgery in any case.
Department of Otolaryngology, Hyogo College of Medicine, Nishinomiya, Hyogo, Japan. tseo@hyo-med.ac.jp
Toru
T
Seo
Misako
M
Hashimoto
Naoki
N
Saka
Masafumi
M
Sakagami
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D001299:Audiometry; D002150:Caloric Tests; D019054:Evoked Potentials, Motor / Q000502:physiology; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006319:Hearing Loss, Sensorineural / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000503:physiopathology; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009334:Neck Muscles / Q000294:innervation; D011183:Postoperative Complications / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000503:physiopathology; D004856:Postural Balance / Q000502:physiology; D012665:Semicircular Canals / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000601:surgery*; D013525:Surgical Instruments; D014717:Vertigo / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000601:surgery*; D015837:Vestibular Diseases / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000503:physiopathology; D014724:Vestibular Function Tests