title: Quality of life in acoustic neuroma patients.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To examine the differences in quality of life for vestibular schwannoma patients undergoing conservative management, gamma knife, and surgery.
  
  
  METHODS
  Vestibular schwannoma patients without a diagnosis of NF2.
  
  
  METHODS
  Vestibular schwannoma treatment or conservative management.
  
  
  METHODS
  Penn Acoustic Neuroma Quality of Life (PANQOL) survey scores (0-100).
  
  
  RESULTS
  One hundred eighty-six patients (98 conservative, 49 gamma knife, 39 surgery) were included. Mean patient age (years) of the surgery group (49 ± 14) was significantly younger than both the conservative (58 ± 13) and gamma knife group (59 ± 12) (p < 0.001). Mean follow-up time was 2.6 years.Tumor size (mm) was found to be significantly different between the conservative (8 ± 4.8), gamma knife (18 ± 5.9), and surgery (22 ± 8.3) groups (p < 0.001). Speech recognition threshold and speech discrimination percentage were significantly better for the conservative group compared to the gamma knife or surgery groups (p < 0.001).The hearing domain scores seemed better for the conservative group (62 ± 26) when compared to the surgery group (47 ± 25). The general and total domain scores were similar for all treatment groups, whereas the quality-of-life scores for gamma knife and surgery were similar.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Although surgery groups' significantly larger tumors and worse hearing were apparent in specific PANQOL domains, all patients achieved a similar general level of quality of life.
authors.affiliation: *Departments of Otorhinolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery and †Neurosurgery, Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S.A.
authors.forename: Eamon J
authors.initials: EJ
authors.lastname: McLaughlin
authors.forename: Douglas C
authors.initials: DC
authors.lastname: Bigelow
authors.forename: John Y K
authors.initials: JY
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.forename: Michael J
authors.initials: MJ
authors.lastname: Ruckenstein
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D005260:Female; D006309:Hearing; D006320:Hearing Tests; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009464:Neuroma, Acoustic / Q000150:complications* / Q000601:surgery; D011788:Quality of Life; D016634:Radiosurgery; D013067:Speech Perception; D016896:Treatment Outcome