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Biomedical subjects

R Hinchcliffe

Publications and source records attributed to R Hinchcliffe.

11 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed1992

Occupational noise induced vestibular malfunction?

This paper comprises a review of the evidence for the possibility that exposure to noise may damage the vestibular receptors in the internal ear as well as those in the cochlea. The review covers lay and medical publications, observations on patients, experimental studies, and compensation claims. It concludes that the verdict must be "not proven"--that is, although such damage is possible, the evidence is not strong enough to regard it as probable.

Animals↗
PubMed1991

Emotional stability; its relationship to confidence in maintaining balance.

Previous failures to find an association between postural test results and the complaints of dizziness/imbalance were further investigated in neuro-otology out-patients, testing in a range of everyday situations requiring balance. Three matched groups of patients were compared: those complaining of dizziness/imbalance; those reporting but not complaining of dizziness/imbalance; and those who had never experienced these symptoms as noteworthy. No difference was found between the groups in measures of postural performance, self-reported confidence in balance, or in several trait measures of fear/anxiety. However, confidence in balance was significantly correlated with fear/anxiety measures across the sample. The correlations were strongest in complaining patients and weakest in patients reporting but not complaining of dizziness/imbalance. The results suggest that psychological characteristics are likely to influence the reporting of symptoms of dizziness/imbalance. The contribution of vestibular and other balance disorders is unclear given that the three groups performed equally well on postural tests.

Adaptation, Psychological↗
PubMed1991

The prevalence of psychological disturbance in neurotology outpatients.

This study assesses the prevalence of psychological disturbance among a consecutive series of 120 neuro-otology outpatients, using a structured interview conducted by a clinical psychologist. 42% of all patients were found to be in need of, and were offered, psychological help (27% of those with hearing loss, 45% of those with tinnitus and 64% of those with dizziness). 86% of those offered psychological help accepted it. Current psychological distress was associated with the number of symptoms complained of and past psychiatric history. Patients completed the General Health Questionnaire which was found to have a sensitivity rate of 82% and a specificity rate of 87% in this setting. Physicians were also asked to rate patients' psychological state; close agreement was found between these ratings and those of a psychologist. The contribution of psychological assessment of neuro-otology patients is discussed.

Ambulatory Care↗
PubMed1991

The influence of contralateral acoustic stimulation on click-evoked otoacoustic emissions in humans.

Contralateral acoustic stimulation has the effect of reducing the amplitude and shifting the phase of click-evoked OAEs. This effect is thought to be mediated via the medial efferent system and, therefore, the presence of this effect could be used to test the integrity of the neural pathway from one cochlea to the other. With a clinical application in mind, a technique for demonstrating the influence of contralateral acoustic stimulation on click-evoked OAEs was designed to overcome fluctuations in patient and environmental noise. The results of this test on three normal subjects and a patient with a posterior fossa lesion are described.

Acoustic Stimulation↗
PubMed1979

Implementing a computer-based electro-oculographic analysis system.

Electro-oculographic recordings of caloric-induced nystagmus were conducted in a number of normal and disordered subjects. On the basis of the results, implementation of a clinical measuring system is considered; this is based on the interbeat interval, selected in view of its favourable sensitivity and stability. Two stages of processing are involved; first, the determination of the interbeat intervals, second the analysis. The first stage has been implemented off-line on a general purpose computer and also, in on-line mode, by special purpose electronics. The second stage requires computer analysis. We have used the rank magnitude sequences of interbeat intervals as the basis of the analysis.

Adult↗
PubMed1977

Caloric test with oculogyral illusion as response.

It has been demonstrated that the caloric test can be simplified further by making use of the oculogyral illusion. Since the test is conducted under conditions of optic fixation, this method probably also enhances the sensitivity of the caloric test. The reproducibility of the tests also appears high, at least in respect of measures of "canal paresis". When used in conjunction with other tests for detecting vestibular imbalance, e.g. examination for spontaneous and provocation nystagmus using Frenzel glasses, this OGI caloric test should provide a convenient procedure for the clinical examination of vestibular function.

Adult↗
PubMed1975

A virological and epidemiological study of patients with acute hearing loss.

Virological and epidemiological data were examined in thirty-nine patients with acute hearing loss. The hearing loss was unilateral in thirty-one patients and bilateral in eight. There was a history of upper-respiratory-tract infection before onset of deafness in ten of the patients. Cases were more common in the autumn, with nineteen of the cases occurring in the 3 months from September to November. About half of the patients were 20-40 years old and half 46-73 years old; only one patient was aged less than 20 years. Antibodies to several common viruses were titrated, and there was evidence of recent infection by mumps virus in one case and by Mycoplasma pneumoniae in another. Although no evidence of recent virus infection was found in the remaining patients, it is suggested that the condition may be viral in origin and that further studies should be undertaken.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1975

Gnathostomiasis. A case of otological interest.

A young Thai man was afflicted with neurognathostomiasis. The symptomatology was distinct from that of eosinophillic myeloencephalitis. In view of its neurootological flavor, it is proposed that this newly described symptomatology of neurognathostomiasis should be referred to as the neurootological gnathostomiatic syndrome(NOGS).

Adult↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Subjective magnitude of auditory impairment. A pilot study.

A study of two samples (one in London, the other in Cairo) of patients who were suffering from an impairment of hearing showed that the subjective magnitude of auditory handicap was significantly correlated to the average hearing level at 2 000 Hz for the two ears. For both samples, the subjective magnitude of the auditory handicap was shown to be a power function of the hearing loss expressed in terms of the sound pressure corresponding to the threshold of hearing. The exponents in the power function applying to the two samples were similar. Age, sex and pain threshold did not influence the estimation of the subjective magnitude of auditory handicap in this study.

Adolescent↗