title: Endolymphatic hydrops in patients with tinnitus as the major symptom.
abstract: Tinnitus is one of the symptoms of Meniere's disease. The relationship between a clinical presentation of subjective tinnitus or ear fullness and endolymphatic hydrops (EH) has not yet been explored. We studied 15 patients with symptoms of tinnitus as their major complaint, with or without hearing loss, who were evaluated using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). The mean age of the subjects was 59 years (range 35-79 years). Nine were women and six were men. Patients were divided into two groups based on whether they had fluctuating or stable tinnitus. These groups were subdivided in the presence or absence of accompanying sensation of ear fullness. MRI was performed 4 h after intravenous gadolinium administration. Overall, 30 ears were evaluated. EH in the cochlea was present in 14 of 25 symptomatic ears (56 %) in patients with tinnitus as the major complaint. Significant hydrops was present in 7 of 14 ears and mild hydrops in the other ears. Patients with fluctuating tinnitus had EH more frequently than patients with stable tinnitus. Furthermore, the presence of ear fullness also correlated with the presence of EH in the cochlea. However, there was no significant relationship between EH in the cochlea and age, sex, duration of tinnitus, hearing level or the configuration of the audiogram. Our study revealed that patients who had tinnitus as their major symptom often had EH. Using MRI to identify this covert early EH in patients who have tinnitus as their major symptom may broaden the treatment options for tinnitus.
authors: Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Nagoya University Graduate School of Medicine, 65, Tsurumai-cho, Showa-ku, 466-8550, Nagoya, Japan, tadaoy@med.nagoya-u.ac.jp.
authors: Tadao
authors: T
authors: Yoshida
authors: Masaaki
authors: M
authors: Teranishi
authors: Masahiro
authors: M
authors: Kato
authors: Hironao
authors: H
authors: Otake
authors: Ken
authors: K
authors: Kato
authors: Michihiko
authors: M
authors: Sone
authors: Masahiro
authors: M
authors: Yamazaki
authors: Shinji
authors: S
authors: Naganawa
authors: Tsutomu
authors: T
authors: Nakashima
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D003287:Contrast Media; D018159:Endolymphatic Hydrops / Q000150:complications* / Q000175:diagnosis; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D014012:Tinnitus / Q000150:complications*
chemical_list: D003287:Contrast Media
references: Acta Otolaryngol. 2011 May;131(5):474-9
references: 21198346
references: Magn Reson Med Sci. 2012;11(1):43-51
references: 22450386
references: Acta Otolaryngol. 2012 Feb;132(2):141-5
references: 22201289
references: Int Tinnitus J. 2011;16(2):87
references: 22249864
references: Magn Reson Med Sci. 2010;9(4):237-42
references: 21187694
references: J Speech Hear Disord. 1990 Aug;55(3):439-53
references: 2381186
references: Acta Otolaryngol. 2012 Mar;132(3):241-6
references: 22201230
references: Audiol Neurootol. 2010;15(4):254-60
references: 19923813
references: Acta Otolaryngol Suppl. 1984;406:52-5
references: 6332463
references: Otol Neurotol. 2011 Dec;32(9):1480-5
references: 22072257
references: Acta Otolaryngol. 2010 Sep;130(9):1013-8
references: 20377503
references: Eur Arch Otorhinolaryngol. 2009 Dec;266(12):1871-7
references: 19455350
references: Acta Otolaryngol Suppl. 2009 Feb;(560):9-14
references: 19221901
references: Magn Reson Med Sci. 2008;7(2):85-91
references: 18603840
references: Laryngoscope. 2007 Mar;117(3):415-20
references: 17279053
references: J Magn Reson Imaging. 2010 Jan;31(1):210-4
references: 20027590
references: Am J Otol. 1999 May;20(3):350-6
references: 10337977
references: Acta Otolaryngol. 2010 Aug;130(8):917-23
references: 20105111
references: Otolaryngol Head Neck Surg. 1995 Sep;113(3):181-5
references: 7675476