Ear: approach to complaints
Hearing loss, vertigo, tinnitus, earache and ear discharge.
8 pages
Approach to a complaint
- Approach to ear dischargeThe look of the discharge, how long it has lasted and the state of the eardrum point to the…
- Approach to earache: from the ear or referredIf otoscopy is normal, earache usually comes from elsewhere: the teeth, the jaw joint, the…
- Approach to hearing lossDecide whether hearing loss is conductive or sensorineural and whether it is sudden: sudden…
- Approach to tinnitusTinnitus usually comes with hearing loss; what matters is whether it is one-sided, pulsatile or…
- Approach to vertigo: peripheral or centralSort vertigo by duration and trigger; in acute continuous vertigo the HINTS exam separates…
Topic
- Complications of otitis media: from mastoiditis to brain abscessEar infections can spread to bone, inner ear, facial nerve, veins and brain; fever, headache or…
- External ear problems: wax, otomycosis, furuncle, perichondritis, exostoses and keratosis obturansMost outer-ear problems are wax, infection or bony growths; each has a clue on otoscopy and a…
- Other causes of vertigo: vestibular migraine, PPPD, perilymph fistula, canal dehiscence and motion sicknessBeyond BPPV, neuritis and Ménière, vertigo can come from migraine, chronic functional dizziness…
A to Z
Educational content; it does not replace a medical assessment and is not a clinical instruction. For a real case, follow current guidelines and specialist advice.
Representative model, for educational purposes only.