hearing

• Conductive hearing loss


  Results from physical obstruction of sound wave transmission
• Sensorineural hearing loss


  Results from a defect in the cochlea, the 8th cranial nerve of the brain itself
• Presbycusis


  Sensorineural hearing loss that occurs with aging due to breakdown of cochlear nerve cells and decreased blood supply to inner ear
• Diagnostic tests for hearing loss


  1. Audiometry

  2. Tuning Fork (Weber and Rinne)

  3. Audioscopy
• Nonsurgical treatment for hearing loss


  • Drug therapy
  • Assistive devices (portable amplifiers, telephone amplifiers, flashing lights, hearing aids)
  • Cochlear implants
• Surgical treatment for hearing loss


  1. Tympanoplasty

  2. Stapedectomy
• Meniere's disease


  Excess of endolymphatic fluid that distorts the entire inner-canal system, leading to decreased hearing, vertigo, and tinnitus
• Features of Meniere's disease


  • Tinnitus
  • One-sided sensorineural hearing loss
  • Vertigo
• Treatment for Meniere's disease

  1. Nutrition therapy (hydrops diet)

  2. Drug therapy (diuretics, vasodilators, antihistamines, antivertiginous medications, antiemetics)

  3. Surgical intervention (labyrinthectomy, endolymphatic decompression)
• Nurse teaching for client with frequent Meniere's disease episodes


  • Reducing activity can reduce activity of episodes
  • Reducing sodium, caffeine, and alcohol intake can be beneficial
  • When moving from sitting to standing, be cautious and take your time