METHOD OF DETERMINING FORM OF HEARING LOSS IN PATIENTS WITH UNILATERAL CHANGE OF HEARING Russian patent published in 2018 - IPC A61B8/00 

FIELD: medicine.

SUBSTANCE: invention relates to medicine, namely to otolaryngology, and can be used in determining the form of hearing loss with a unilateral change in the hearing of the patient. For this purpose, determine the bone (BC) and air conduction (AC), bone-air interval (BAI) by audiological examination of each ear. In addition, a threshold of audibility of an ultrasound (US) signal common to both ears is determined, for which an ultrasonic emitter is placed on the patient's forehead along the sagittal line of the head at the border of hair growth with preliminary application of vaseline oil on the skin surface. US signal is applied at a frequency of 100 kHz and the threshold of hearing of ultrasonic signals and lateralization of the US signal at the threshold of hearing of US signals are determined. And with a louder sound – 5–7 dB more than the threshold of hearing of US (suprathreshold lateralization), determine a normally hearing, healthy ear. Next, a healthy ear is masked with narrow-band noise +40 dB above the air conduction (AC) of this ear and the thresholds of AC, bone conduction (BC) and BAI are redefined for worse hearing ear. When combined: lateralization of audible sounds and ultrasound in the direction of a worse hearing ear, the lack of differences in BC thresholds on a worse hearing ear before and after masking a healthy ear, preserving the same BAI on a worse hearing ear before and after masking a normal hearing ear – diagnose conductive hearing loss on a worse hearing ear. In combination: lateralization of audible sounds in the direction of a worse hearing ear, the lack of lateralization of the threshold and above-threshold US or the presence of lateral US in the direction of a healthy ear, increased BC thresholds of worse hearing ear and decreased BAI thereof after masking a normal hearing ear reveal the presence of a hidden cochlear component in the worse hearing ear and, accordingly, diagnose mixed hearing loss on it.

EFFECT: method provides an accurate determination of the form of hearing loss in patients at the expense of a specific set of studies, which allows confirming or refuting the presence of a cochlear component.

1 cl, 3 ex