title: Case of bilateral pneumolabyrinth presenting as sudden, bilateral deafness, without temporal bone fracture, after a fall.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  We report a case of bilateral pneumolabyrinth presenting as sudden, bilateral deafness, without temporal bone fracture, after a fall.
  
  
  METHODS
  A 49-year-old man presented with sudden, bilateral deafness and whirling vertigo, without any other neurological manifestations. Temporal bone computed tomography clearly demonstrated the presence of air in the vestibule and cochlea on both sides. However, there was no definite fracture line, ossicular chain anomaly or soft tissue density in the temporal bone or middle-ear cavity. The patient was treated conservatively. Unfortunately, there was no improvement in his hearing.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Pneumolabyrinth is an uncommon condition in which air is present in the vestibule or cochlea. It is rarely found, even with fractures violating the otic capsule or with transverse fractures of the temporal bone. In addition, its bilateral occurrence is extremely rare. In this article, we describe a case of bilateral pneumolabyrinth presenting as sudden, bilateral deafness, without temporal bone fracture, an occurrence which has not previously been reported.
authors.affiliation: Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, College of Medicine, Chonbuk National University, Jeon-ju, South Korea. imaima97@naver.com
authors.forename: E J
authors.initials: EJ
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.forename: Y S
authors.initials: YS
authors.lastname: Yang
authors.forename: Y J
authors.initials: YJ
authors.lastname: Yoon
mesh_terms: D000058:Accidental Falls; D000388:Air; D001301:Audiometry, Pure-Tone; D007758:Ear, Inner / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000473:pathology; D016489:Head Injuries, Closed / Q000150:complications* / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging; D006312:Hearing Loss, Bilateral / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000209:etiology*; D006319:Hearing Loss, Sensorineural / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000209:etiology; D003639:Hearing Loss, Sudden / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000209:etiology; D006801:Humans; D007759:Labyrinth Diseases / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000209:etiology / Q000503:physiopathology; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D013701:Temporal Bone / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging; D014012:Tinnitus / Q000209:etiology; D014057:Tomography, X-Ray Computed; D016896:Treatment Outcome; D014717:Vertigo / Q000209:etiology*