Reconstruction of the ossicular chain in the middle ear with glass ionomer cement.

Objectives: The aim of this study is to describe a method to repair small defects (1 to 2 mm) of the ossicular chain by means of glass ionomer cement (GIC) alone. Larger defects can be repaired with a combination of GIC and a platinum wire prosthesis. GIC is a two-component hybrid material consisting of inorganic glass particles surrounded by an insoluble hydrogel matrix.

High-frequency air conduction audiometry. Testing of a new low impedance circumaural transducer system in normal young persons.

A new circumaural transducer was tested in the frequency range 125 Hz to 20 kHz. The new transducer has a low acoustic impedance and loads the ear closely to free-field conditions, thus ensuring that sensitivity to different positions of the transducer around the ear is reduced compared to conventional audiometric headphones. The transducer was tested on 57 individuals (114 ears) in the age range 10 to 20 (median age 17.

Secretory otitis media--a question of surface activity in the eustachian tube?

An improved thin-layer chromatographic assay for monitoring phospholipid ratio in mucus was used to study the respiratory system distribution of children with and without secretory otitis media. Phosphatidylcholine, phosphatidylethanolamine and sphingomyelin abound, while only traces of other phospholipids are found. Analyses show more sphingomyelin and less phosphatidylcholine in the Eustachian tube and nose than in the lung, while phosphatidylethanolamine has about the same distribution.

Ginger root against seasickness. A controlled trial on the open sea.

In a double-blind randomized placebo trial, the effect of the powdered rhizome of ginger (Zingiber officinale) was tested on seasickness. Eighty naval cadets, unaccustomed to sailing in heavy seas reported during voyages on the high seas, symptoms of seasickness every hour for 4 consecutive hours after ingestion of 1 g of the drug or placebo. Ginger root reduced the tendency to vomiting and cold sweating significantly better than placebo did (p less than 0.