Journal of Otorhinolaryngology and Facial Plastic Surgery

Background: Tinnitus is the perception of sound in the absence of any external stimulus. It may be generated by abnormalities in both peripheral or central auditory system. The auditory tests are useful tools for the evaluation of tinnitus origin.

Purpose: In this study, we compared the results of OAE( Otoacoustic Emissions) and ABR (Auditory Brainstem Response) hearing tests among patients with tinnitus without hearing loss and patients with tinnitus and hearing loss.

Methods: In this cross-sectional study, 60 patients with tinnitus were enrolled and were divided into two groups; a group without hearing loss and other group with hearing loss. DPOAE (Distortion Product Otoacoustic Emissions) TEOAE (Transient Evoked Otoacoustic Emissions), and ABR were performed for all patients with tinnitus referring to ENT clinic of Taleghani Hospital during 2014.

Results: In the present study, 60 patients with a mean age of 52.76±15.69,  including 37 (61.7%) male and 23 (38.3%) female, were studied. Patients without hearing loss were younger than those with hearing loss (P=0.001). The mean Speech Reception Threshold (SRT) in the group without hearing loss in both ears  was significantly lower than patients with hearing loss (P=0.001). The difference between two groups regarding ABR in right ear in waves I, V, and I-V was statistically significant (P<0.05).  In patients without hearing loss there was a significant difference between two age groups (>55 and ≤55 years) in wave III of ABR in left ear (P=0.03).

Background: Chronic Otitis Media (COM) is a relatively common condition and the occurrence of hearing loss is probable. COM may lead to ossicular discontinuity, and unless the operation is performed, it won't be determined. Identifying possible cases of erosion and discontinuity of ossicles is helpful in surgical planning and in anticipation of the probable need for procuring ossicular prosthesis.

Purpose: The aim of this study was to evaluate the relationship between preoperative clinical findings and intraoperative findings.

Methods: This is a cross sectional study carried out in 2012 in two tertiary referral hospitals of Tehran, (the Loghman and the Taleghani hospitals). The sample under study consisted of COM patients who referred to the otolaryngology clinics and were tymponoplasty candidates. Two hundred and seven  patients with the mean age of 36.2±13.9 (ranging from 9-67 years) were enrolled in the study. Pre-surgical findings were investigated and the relationship between ossicular discontinuity and pre-surgical findings were evaluated.

Results: Incus-Stapes discontinuity (IS Discontinuity) and Incus-Malleus discontinuity (IM Discontinuity) were seen in 60 (29%) and 25 (12.1%) patients, respectively. We found IS Discontinuity in 38 (24.1%) patients with central perforation and 22 (48.9%) cases of marginal perforations (P=0.005). IM Discontinuity was observed in 14 (8.9%) cases with central perforation, while this was seen in 11 (22.4%) cases with marginal perforations (P=0.011). On the other hand, 34 (42%) patients with otorrhea had IS Discontinuity whereas 26 (20.6%) cases of dry ears showed this type of ossicular problem (P<0.001). IM Discontinuity was detected in 13 (16%) and 12 (9.5%) cases with and without otorrhea, respectively (P=0.011). IS Discontinuity and IM Discontinuity were significantly more common in the patients with Air Bone Gap of more than 40 db.

Background: Bone marrow stromal stem cells (BMSCs) are non-hematopoietic, stromal cellsthat can differentiate into mesenchymal and other type of tissues. The BMSCs have properties that make them ideal candidates for tissue engineering. The present study aimed to investigate the effect of deferoxamine (DFO) on homing of bone marrow-derived mesenchymal stem cell, and to examine if DFO can increase migration and subsequent homing of mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) in vitro.

Methods: BMSCs were isolated from the long bones of NMARI rats through density gradientcentrifugation and adherent cell culture. Next, they were treated using DFO in Dulbecco’s modified eagle medium (DMEM) for 24 h. The expression of chemokine receptor 2 (CCR2) were assessed using RT-PCR.

Results: BMSCs expressed CCR2 on a large proportion of cells. In DFO-treated BMSCs,expression of CCR2 (P<0.005) significantly increased compared to that in control groups. Elevation and up regulation of CCR2 in DFO-treated MSCs were observed.

Background: Neurodegeneration in the locus coeruleus (LC) has been documented in several central nervous system (CNS) neurodegenerative diseases and sleep deprivation. In this study, we investigated the possible role of melatonin in reversing cognitive dysfunction induced by SD in rats.

Methods: The aim of this work was to determine if REM sleep deprivation would induce morphological changes in the brains of rats. The effects of REM sleep deprivation on the nuclear volume of neurons from the locus coeruleus, the main noradrenergic nucleus in the brain.

Results: The results obtained showed that REM sleep deprivation significantly decreased the number of neurons in the locus coeruleus.

Conclusion: A change in cell nuclear volume suggests a change in its metabolic activity, therefore, our data provide an anatomical basis for further studies of neuron’s morphology in brain structures after REM sleep deprivation.

Background: Adenotonsillar hypertrophy is one of the most prevalent causes of upper airway obstruction in pediatric patients. Recent studies have shown contradictory findings about helicobacter pylori colonization in adenotonsilar tissue and its role on adenotonsilar hypertrophy. According to this, we decided to investigate relationship between helicobacter pylori colonization and adenotonsillar hypertrophy.

Methods: This is a comparative study in otorhinolaryngology department of Amir Almoemenin hospital in Semnan. In this study, pediatric patients with adenotosillar hypertrophy (n=50) were compared with control group (n=50) in terms of H. pylori colonization in adenotonsillar tissue. All of them were examined by urease breath test (UBT). Adenoid and tonsil biopsy specimens (in 30 patients with adenotonsilectomy) were collected and underwent the RUT for investigating colonization of Helicobacter pylori.

Results: Fourteen percent of patients with adenotonsillar hypertrophy and 20% of control were found helicobacter pylori infection. There was no significant association between helicobacter pylori and adenotonsillar hypertrophy (odds ratio: 0.65 with confidence interval: 0.2-2.09).

Hair cells are the sensory epithelial cells of both the auditory and the vestibular systems in the inner ear of all vertebrates. Auditory hair cells are located in the organ of corti on a thin layer of basement membrane in the cochlea of the inner ear. Damage to hair cells decreases hearing sensitivity. When these delicate hair cells in the cochlea are damaged, sound signals cannot be sent to the brain. In general, damage to the mammalian inner ear, is not returnable. In fact, a key goal in the treatment of sensorineural hearing loss is to find appropriate procedures to replace the missing hair cells. Cell therapy is one of the treatment options for hearing loss. In this regard, studies focus on ways which hair cells can be provided from exogenous and endogenous stem cells. This review identified ways to induce auditory hair cells regeneration from stem cells as the potential therapeutic approaches for the hearing loss.

Auditory hair cells (HCs) cannot be spontaneously regenerated or replaced in mammalian damaged cochlea which leads to permanent deafness. On the other hand, regenerative ability of HCs in lower vertebrates such as birds and amphibians causes that researchers investigate underlying mechanisms and pathways which can possibly induce mammalian cochlear HCs regeneration and hearing recovery. Signaling cascades of HCs regeneration in lower vertebrate can be considered as the potential therapeutic option for the hearing loss in human. This paper reviews current knowledge about the main signaling pathways involved in HCs development in the mammalian cochlea.