[ACUTE OTITIS MEDIA BACTERIOLOGY IN CHILDREN YOUNGER THAN THREE MONTHS IN THE LAST 16 YEARS].

Background: Only scant information is available regarding the bacteriology of acute otitis media (AOM) in neonates.

Objectives: To investigate the bacteriology of AOM post the introduction of Pneumococcal Conjugate Vaccine (PCV13) in children younger than 3 months and its relation to the mode of delivery.

Methods: Retrospective bacteriological analysis of middle ear fluids taken from children younger than 60 months suffering from AOM.

[THE VIDEO HEAD IMPULSE TEST (VHIT)].

The video head impulse test (vHIT) is a new tool in the vestibular tests' arsenal. It is based on the clinical Head Impulse Test, where the integrity of the vestibulo-ocular reflex is tested by high frequency excitation of the semi-circular canals. The vHIT system is composed of an accelerometer measuring the head movements, and a high frequency infra-red camera for eye tracking mounted on a light-weighted goggles.

[THE VIDEO HEAD IMPULSE TEST (VHIT): CAN WE RELY ON THE GAIN PARAMETER ALONE?].

Introduction: While the bedside head impulse test evaluates the presence of refixation saccades (RS) as a measure of failing vestibulo-ocular reflex (VOR) the VOR gain calculated by the video head-impulse test (vHIT) is considered the primary measure for semicircular canal function while the role RS is still under evaluation.

Aims: To evaluate the benefit of various RS characteristics towards the diagnosis of the left horizontal semicircular function by vHIT.

Methods: The vHIT recordings of 40 patients with left sided horizontal VOR gains <0.

The Vestibular Time Constant and Clinical Response to Antimotion Sickness Medication.

Objective: The therapeutic effects of antimotion sickness medications involve suppression of several components along the vestibular system. Scopolamine-based medications have proved to be the most effective anti-seasickness agents. However, there is high variability in individual responses.

Refining the Video Head Impulse Test Diagnostic Accuracy: A Case-Control Study.

Introduction: Current clinical practice considers the vestibulo-ocular reflex (VOR) gain as registered by the video head impulse test (vHIT) as the primary measure for semicircular canal function, while the role of the re-fixation saccades (RSs) is still under evaluation. The goal of the study was to appraise the added benefit of RS towards the improvement of vHIT diagnostic accuracy in cases of suspected left horizontal semicircular canal dysfunction.

Methods: The vHIT recordings of 40 patients with left-sided horizontal VOR gains <0.

Two decades of otitis media in northern Israel: Changing trends in the offending bacteria and antibiotic susceptibility.

Objective: Bacteriology and antibiotic resistance trends changed considerably following introduction of the pneumococcal conjugate vaccines (PCV) 7 and 13, with differences between geographic regions. The objective of this study was to evaluate changes in acute otitis media (AOM) bacteriology and antibiotic susceptibility from the pre-vaccination period (2002-2008) to after the introduction of PCV13 (2010-2019) in northern Israel.

Methods: Data were collected from 3277 middle ear fluid (MEF) cultures and 4822 common AOM-generating pathogens of children aged <5 years with otitis media, taken during 2002-2019.

Functional Integrity of the Inferior Vestibular Nerve and Posterior Canal BPPV.

The functional integrity of the inferior vestibular nerve (IVN) may be evaluated by the cervical vestibular evoked myogenic potential (cVEMP) response, which requires signal transmission via the nerve. As functional integrity of the IVN innervating the posterior semicircular canal is required to produce the typical positioning vertigo and nystagmus characterizing posterior canal benign paroxysmal positional vertigo (PCBPPV), we hypothesized that normal cVEMPs would be found in most PCBPPV patients. Twenty-four PCBPPV patients participated in a prospective cohort study.

Bone Mineral Density in Patients Suffering from Ménière's Disease.

Introduction: Previous studies have reported an association between reduced bone mineral density and the occurrence of benign paroxysmal positional vertigo, balance impairment, and saccular dysfunction. Furthermore, the results of recent animal studies have raised the possibility that vestibular dysfunction could affect bone remodeling and bone mass. The goal of the study was to compare bone mineral density of patients suffering from definite Ménière's disease to that of a matched control group.

The head impulse test as a predictor of videonystagmography caloric test lateralization according to the level of examiner experience: A prospective open-label study.

We conducted a study to compare how well the head impulse test (HIT), without and with eye-movement recordings, would predict videonystagmographic (VNG) caloric test lateralization when performed by a resident and an experienced otoneurologist. This prospective, open-label, blinded study was conducted in an ambulatory tertiary care referral center. Our study population was made up of 60 patients-29 men and 31 women, aged 20 to 82 years (mean: 56.

Hearing and Otoacoustic Emissions Outcome of Stapedotomy: Does the Prosthesis Diameter Matter?

Objective: To compare the hearing and otoacoustic emissions (OAE) outcome of stapedotomy employing 0.4 and 0.6 mm diameter prostheses.

Vestibular Derangement and Motion Intolerance in VATER Association.

VATER association is a nonrandom occurrence of congenital malformations: vertebral defects, anal atresia, tracheoesophageal fistula, renal defects, and radial bone anomalies. We report the case of a 19-year-old man with a childhood diagnosis of VATER association, who presented to the motion sickness clinic with severe seasickness. We discuss the clinical and laboratory diagnosis of vestibular pathophysiology, which was confirmed by MRI of lateral semicircular canal and vestibule dysplasia.

Primary solitary intralabyrinthine schwannoma: A report of 7 cases and a review of the literature.

Intralabyrinthine schwannomas (ILSs) are uncommon benign tumors that originate in the Schwann cell sheath of the intralabyrinthine distal branches of the vestibulocochlear nerve. They have no initial involvement in the internal auditory canal, although that might develop later. These lesions can arise inside the cochlea, originate in the vestibule or, in rare cases, develop in the semicircular canals.

Susac's Syndrome: A Case with Unusual Cardiac Vestibular and Imaging Manifestations.

Susac's syndrome (SS) is a disease of the microvasculature of the retina, brain, and inner ear. We describe a patient with unusual manifestations of SS with possible involvement of the brainstem, cardiac arrhythmia, and MRI findings lacking the characteristic lesions found in Susac's syndrome.

Evidence for the initiation of decompression sickness by exposure to intense underwater sound.

Mass stranding of cetaceans (whales and dolphins), in close association with the activity of naval sonar systems, has been reported on numerous occasions. Necropsy showed bubble-associated lesions similar to those described in human decompression sickness (DCS). We examined the hypothesis that exposure to underwater sound may potentiate DCS.

Otoacoustic emissions in the prediction of sudden sensorineural hearing loss outcome.

Objective: To evaluate the role of otoacoustic emissions (OAEs) in the prediction of idiopathic sudden sensorineural hearing loss (ISSNHL) outcome.

Study Design: Open-label prospective study.

Setting: Tertiary referral medical center.

Prevention of Cisplatin-Induced Hearing Loss by Intratympanic Dexamethasone: A Randomized Controlled Study.

Objective: To examine the role of intratympanic Dexamethasone (ITD) in the prevention of Cisplatin-induced hearing loss.

Study Design: Prospective randomized controlled clinical trial.

Setting: Tertiary referral center.

Mal de debarquement, motion sickness and the effect of an artificial horizon.

Background: Exposure to unfamiliar motion patterns commonly results in motion sickness and a false perception of motion, termed mal de debarquement, on the return to stable conditions.

Objective: To investigate whether motion sickness severity is correlated with the duration and severity of mal de debarquement; to study the possible preventive effect of projecting earth-referenced scenes (an artificial horizon) during exposure to motion on the development of mal de debarquement.

Methods: Thirty subjects were exposed to the recorded motion profile of a boat in a 3-degrees-of-freedom ship motion simulator.

Vestibular evoked myogenic potentials and habituation to seasickness.

Objective: Seasickness may impose severe limitations on the performance of ships' crew. Cervical vestibular evoked myogenic potentials (cVEMP) assess the function of the saccule, the organ responsible for monitoring vertical linear acceleration, which has been found to be the most provocative motion stimulus in the evolution of motion sickness. We used the cVEMP test in a prospective evaluation of susceptibility and habituation to seasickness.

Vertigo in children and adolescents: characteristics and outcome.

Objectives: To describe the characteristics and outcome of vertigo in a pediatric population.

Patients: All children and adolescents presenting with vertigo to a tertiary otoneurology clinic between the years 2003-2010 were included in the study.

Results: Thirty-seven patients with a mean age of 14 years were evaluated.