Preauricular sinuses are common congenital malformations that usually occur at the anterior margin of the ascending limb of the helix. There are rare cases in which the location of the preauricular sinus is posterior to the tragus, and the direction of the sinus tract is toward the posterior. This variant type of preauricular sinus is called, 'postauricular sinus'. Postauricular sinus is uncommon. Thus, diagnosis and treatment may be delayed due to its location of its opening and atypical clinical symptoms. Typical treatment is a single stage operation through bidirectional skin incision. However, we found out that according to the length and invasion depth of the sinus tract, there was an option between unidirectional and bidirectional skin incisions that we may choose from.
Extremities ; Skin

An osteoma of the temporal bone is a rare benign tumor. External auditory canal is the most common site of osteomas arising from temporal bone, and mastoid osteoma is very rare. A case of a 42-year-old female with a huge osteoma which developed from mastoid cortical bone is presented and the review of the temporal bone osteomas is discussed. The patient showed a huge and hard mass in the right mastoid area growing over a 20-year period. A temporal bone computed tomography scan demonstrated 2.3x2.3x4.3 cm sized bony tumor on surface of the right mastoid and squama. The resection of whole bony tumor with mastoid cortical bone was performed using retroauricular approach. Pathologic evaluation revealed the osteoma. The huge osteoma in the mastoid area may induce a cosmetic deformity. Early diagnosis and surgical removal of the osteoma may ensure an easy and complete treatment. The total resection of bony tumor including mastoid cortical bone is recommended to avoid recurrence.
Adult ; Congenital Abnormalities ; Cosmetics ; Dietary Sucrose ; Ear Canal ; Early Diagnosis ; Female ; Humans ; Mastoid ; Osteoma ; Recurrence ; Temporal Bone

Malignant tumor originated from external auditory canal (EAC) is very rare with an annual incidence of around 1 per million. Pathologically, squamous cell carcinoma is incidentally most common, and adenoid cystic carcinoma, basal cell carcinoma, and melanoma follow in decreasing order. Due to the rarity of malignant tumor of EAC, there is no widely accepted treatment modality yet. But basal cell carcinoma, known to be less aggressive tumor, can be removed with a minimal safety margin and have better treatment results. Recently we experienced a case of basal cell carcinoma in the EAC, confined in the cartilaginous portion of EAC, presenting with intermittent otorrhea for several years. The patient was treated with a sleeve resection of the EAC with a safety margin reconstructed with a split-thickness skin graft. No tumor recurrence or complication was noted in the first postoperative year.
Aminocaproic Acids ; Carcinoma, Adenoid Cystic ; Carcinoma, Basal Cell ; Carcinoma, Squamous Cell ; Ear Canal ; Humans ; Incidence ; Melanoma ; Recurrence ; Skin ; Transplants

Linear scleroderma is a kind of disease that can cause complication of the central nervous system. Sometimes, ipsilateral intracerebral or white matter lesions in the brain magnetic resonance imaging are noted. Nystagmus is important for the differential diagnosis of dizziness. Positional nystagmus was classified into regular direction nystagmus, direction changing positional nystagmus (DCPN) and irregular nystagmus by their character. DCPN is defined as a nystagmus that changes its direction with different head and body positions, and it can be the sign of lesion in the central vestibular system. Recently, we experienced a 17-year-old woman who had a scalp linear scleroderma, treated for about 10 years and showed DCPN induced by positional nystagmus test. We report a case of linear scleroderma accompanied by cerebellar lesion with a brief review of literature.
Adolescent ; Brain ; Central Nervous System ; Cerebellum ; Diagnosis, Differential ; Dizziness ; Female ; Head ; Humans ; Magnetic Resonance Imaging ; Nystagmus, Physiologic ; Scalp ; Scleroderma, Localized ; Vertigo

Many complications have been reported after ear surgery to treat chronic inflammation. These complications include facial nerve paralysis, perichondritis, injury of the dura or of the sigmoid sinus, cyst formation or mucocele in the healed mastoid cavity, and the recurrence of cholesteatoma, granulation tissue, or otorrhea. It might be believed that there could be no relation between ear surgery and spontaneous aneurysmal rupture, and only one other case of spontaneous aneurysmal rupture after ear surgery under general anesthesia has been previously reported in Korea. However, recently, the authors encountered a case of delayed spontaneous aneurysmal rupture 3 weeks after surgery. No problem was experienced during the operation, and it is suspected that an unidentified pre-existing aneurysm was responsible for the intracerebral hemorrhage.
Anesthesia, General ; Aneurysm ; Cerebral Hemorrhage ; Cholesteatoma ; Colon, Sigmoid ; Ear ; Facial Nerve ; Granulation Tissue ; Inflammation ; Korea ; Mastoid ; Mucocele ; Otologic Surgical Procedures ; Paralysis ; Recurrence ; Rupture

Ramsay Hunt syndrome is an infectious disease caused by the varicella zoster virus. It is characterized by the symptoms of facial paralysis, otalgia, and erythematous vesicular rash on the auricle and/or oral cavity. We present a case of a patient with clinical evidence of Ramsay Hunt syndrome involving the cranial nerves VI, VII, and VIII. The patient, a 66-year-old woman, showed left facial palsy associated with vesicular eruptions on her left auricle, impaired gaze to left side, and left hearing loss. Four months after the treatment with systemic steroid and antiviral agents, her all symptoms and signs including facial paralysis and diplopia disappeared.
Aged ; Antiviral Agents ; Communicable Diseases ; Cranial Nerves ; Diplopia ; Earache ; Exanthema ; Facial Paralysis ; Female ; Hearing Loss ; Herpes Zoster Oticus ; Herpesvirus 3, Human ; Humans ; Mouth ; Polyneuropathies

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) is one of major pathogens in patients with chronic suppurative otitis media (CSOM). In addition to intrinsic MRSA infection of the mastoid air cell system, nasal colonization of MRSA, a known predictor of postoperative surgical site infection, may pose increased risk of postoperative complications. The purpose of this study is to describe microbiology of preoperative nasal swab screening and localized middle ear specimens in patients undergoing otologic surgeries. SUBJECTS AND METHODS: Forty-nine consecutive patients with CSOM who underwent middle ear surgery were included. Preoperative nasal swabs for MRSA, and preoperative and intraoperative middle ear swabs were collected and compared for pathogens. RESULTS: Preoperative nasal swab screening confirmed MRSA colonization in 3/49 patients (6.1%) and methicillin-resistant coagulase-negative Staphylococcus (MRCNS) in 9/49 patients (18.4%). Correlation with preoperative culture results and nasal swab screening results were compatible in 2/4 patients with positive nasal swab for MRSA and 1/9 patients with positive nasal swab for MRCNS. Postoperative conversion to MRSA was observed in 3 patients. CONCLUSIONS: The rate of nasal MRSA colonization among patients with CSOM was higher than among the general community. Preoperative MRSA colonization was associated with MRSA from middle ear specimens. Further studies are warranted to investigate the possible benefit of preoperative treatment of MRSA colonized patients undergoing middle ear surgeries.
Colon ; Ear, Middle ; Humans ; Mass Screening ; Mastoid ; Methicillin Resistance ; Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus ; Otitis Media ; Otitis Media, Suppurative ; Postoperative Complications ; Staphylococcus

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Sudden sensorineural hearing loss (SSNHL) is commonly defined as a loss of at least 30 dB in three contiguous frequencies occurring within 3 days. Systemic steroid administration has become the most widely accepted treatment option for SSNHL. Since viral infection and vascular compromise are considered specific causes of SSNHL, antiviral agents, anticoagulants, and stellate ganglion block have been used for its treatment, although the evidence of their effectiveness is weak. The present study evaluated the hearing recovery rate in the combination therapy group (systemic steroids, antiviral agent, anticoagulants, and stellate ganglion block) in comparison with patients treated with systemic steroids alone. SUBJECTS AND METHODS: A total of 85 patients diagnosed with SSNHL were treated with combination therapy (group A, 46 patients) or systemic steroids only (group B, 39 patients). Hearing improvement was defined as a hearing gain of more than slight improvement using Siegel's criteria. All patients were treated with a 10-day course of systemic steroids (10-mg dexamethasone for 5 days, followed by tapering for 5 days). Acyclovir, heparin, and stellate ganglion block were included in the group A treatment regimen. RESULTS: The overall rate of hearing improvement was 60.9% (28/46 patients) in group A, which was significantly higher than that (38.5%, 15/39 patients) in group B. The distribution of prognostic factors was not significantly different between the two groups with the exception of the degree of initial hearing loss, which was more severe in group A. Upon analysis according to prognostic factors, group A showed a better hearing improvement recovery rate than group B in patients with hearing loss >70 dB, age >41 years, dizziness, and early treatment (<1 week). CONCLUSIONS: Thus SSNHL patients treated with combination therapy have a higher likelihood of hearing improvement than those treated with systemic steroids alone.
Acyclovir ; Anticoagulants ; Antiviral Agents ; Dexamethasone ; Dizziness ; Hearing ; Hearing Loss ; Hearing Loss, Sensorineural ; Heparin ; Humans ; Stellate Ganglion ; Steroids

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Although the adverse effect of long term steroid usage is well known, the adverse effect of short term high dose steroid usage has not been studied thoroughly. The purpose of this study was to identify the characteristics of the adverse effects when using a high dose steroid for a short term. We also compared the adverse effect of steroid between in- and out-patients. SUBJECTS AND METHODS: The medical record of 500 patients, who were treated with methylprednisolone 48 mg/day for 1-2 weeks, was retrospectively reviewed. Steroid was prescribed due to SSNHL, Bell's palsy, Ramsay-Hunt syndrome and herpes zoster oticus. The incidence of each adverse effect was analyzed, and also the time point of detection was analyzed. The 500 patients were composed of 250 in-patients and 250 out-patients. The adverse effect was compared between these two groups, as well. RESULTS: Adverse effect of steroid was found in 33.0% of the patients. Among these adverse effects, abdominal discomfort (26.8%) was most common, followed by skin rash (14.7%), swelling (13.4%), and hot flush (6.9%). Abdominal discomfort and hot flush was mostly detected on the first week. Meanwhile, the skin rash was usually detected on the third week. The incidence of adverse effect was significantly higher in the out-patient group. CONCLUSIONS: The incidence of high dose short term steroid treatment may be very high. The patients should be warned about these adverse effects. Monitoring should be performed until 3-4 week, since some adverse effects may not be detected until this time point.
Bell Palsy ; Exanthema ; Herpes Zoster Oticus ; Humans ; Incidence ; Medical Records ; Methylprednisolone ; Outpatients ; Retrospective Studies

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: The hearing loss of workers can occur when they are affected by age, otologic disease, and work-related risks such as noise and chemicals. Based on the Korean Working Conditions Survey (KWCS) in 2010, this research aimed to estimate the prevalence rate of hearing loss and to identify the risk factors affecting its occurrence. SUBJECTS AND METHODS: The subjects were 10019 employees who completed an interview conducted as part of KWCS in 2010. The prevalence rate of hearing loss according to sex, age, education, income, smoking, drinking, hypertension, industrial type, occupations, employment status, working period, and hazards at the workplace were assessed. The factors that could affect the occurrence of hearing loss were investigated based on a logistic regression analysis. RESULTS: The prevalence rate of hearing loss was 2.7%. In a logistic multivariate analysis, sex, age, occupations, working period, noise, and exposure to chemicals showed statistically significant correlations to the occurrence of hearing loss. The adjusted odd ratios were as follows: 1.74 [95% confidence interval (CI), 1.03-2.96] for males, 2.11 (95% CI, 1.14-3.89) for those in their 40s, 2.24 (95% CI, 1.19-4.20) for those in their 50s, 2.21 (95% CI, 1.18-4.15) for manage/professional works, 2.73 (95% CI, 1.69-4.41) for manufacturing, 2.07 (95% CI, 1.36-3.15) for those who have worked for more than 20 years, 1.72 (95% CI, 1.14-2.58) for noise exposure, 1.53 (95% CI, 1.02-2.30) for vibration exposure and 1.58 (95% CI, 1.11-2.24) for chemical exposure. CONCLUSIONS: The overall occupational and non-occupational risk factors related to employees' hearing loss were reviewed. In addition to the exposure to noise, occupational risks of hearing loss, such as isolated exposure to vibration and chemicals, and combined exposure to noise and these hazards, were identified. Multiple exposure to hazards, along with prolonged noise exposure increased the risk of hearing loss.
Drinking ; Ear Diseases ; Employment ; Hearing ; Hearing Loss ; Humans ; Hypertension ; Logistic Models ; Male ; Multivariate Analysis ; Noise ; Noise, Occupational ; Occupations ; Prevalence ; Risk Factors ; Smoke ; Smoking ; Vibration