Laryngeal cysts of thyroid cartilage origin are unusually rare. A patient had a degenerative cyst of the thyroid cartilage. This presented as a unilateral false cord swelling. Computed tomography helped to localize the lesion to the left thyroid ala. An external laryngeal approach was used for excisional biopsy, and this also proved to be curative. The cyst probably resulted from a traumatic episode 35 years earlier.

A 2-month-old infant developed facial paralysis with a presentation that masqueraded as a possible middle ear tumor. The cause of the paralysis eventually was related to a metabolic consequence of his underlying disorder, cystic fibrosis. To our knowledge, the association of vitamin A imbalance, pseudotumor cerebri, and facial paralysis has not previously been discussed in the otolaryngologic literature.

Seven different types of widely used metallic stapedectomy prostheses were individually placed on a millimeter scale in a plastic Petri dish. The Petri dish was moved within the core and around the magnet of a 1.5-tesla magnetic resonance imaging unit (General Electric Sigma). No movement of any of the prostheses was seen. We conclude that there is no apparent danger of these prostheses becoming displaced in stapedectomy patients subjected to the electromagnetic fields of magnetic resonance imaging units.

After years in its decrease, cervical mycobacterial adenitis is once again an increasing problem in Los Angeles County. We reviewed 54 cases of cervical lymphadenopathies treated over ten years. Twenty-five (46%) of these patients were found to have mycobacterial cervical lymphadenitis. Medical approaches often failed to conclusively diagnose this disease. In our series, none of the patients with cervical adenopathies (36%) treated only medically regressed, even after an average time of 18 months of antituberculosis drug treatment. The treatment of choice seems to be surgical excision and long-term antituberculosis drugs. Surgery provides a rapid tissue diagnosis and confirms the bacterial type, including atypical mycobacterium. This approach is simple, shortens hospitalization, is cost-effective, and carries a low morbidity.

Inverted papilloma is notorious for recurrence and occasional association with malignancy, leading most authors to recommend lateral rhinotomy as the initial surgical approach in all cases; however, conservative surgery has been reported effective in selected cases. To assess the role of conservative procedures, 90 cases of inverted papilloma were retrospectively reviewed. Associated malignancy was rare. Conservative surgery was successful in controlling some cases, but often required two or three operations. All patients with clear sinus films were cured by a single procedure. Abnormal mitotic activity was seen in some aggressive lesions and some associated with malignancy. The surgical exposure in inverted papilloma should be adequate to ensure complete excision. Selected patients with localized disease can be satisfactorily managed by conservative procedures if they are carefully followed. All tissue should be inspected for possible malignancy.

Auditory brain-stem responses (ABR) were recorded in six healthy male volunteers during intravenous infusion of lidocaine that achieved systemic blood levels similar to those seen with conduction anesthesia and antiarrhythmic therapy. Following an initial loading dose of lidocaine (1 mg/kg), subjects noted prominent tinnitus, perioral numbness, and drowsiness. All of these symptoms except drowsiness abated during continued infusion as blood concentrations reached equilibrium. All subjects noted that the click stimuli used to elicit ABR varied markedly in intensity and character throughout the lidocaine infusion. Although waves I and III were unaffected by lidocaine, wave V exhibited significant decreases in amplitude and increases in latency. Therefore, the more central components of the auditory system seem to be the prominent site of lidocaine's central nervous system effects.

Sensorineural hearing loss (SNHL) has been described clinically following chronic otitis media with effusion, but to the best of our knowledge, no studies have demonstrated SNHL in an animal model of otitis media. Using the chinchilla model of pneumococcal otitis media, significant SNHL was demonstrated after purulent otitis media, especially at higher frequencies. Animals with otitis media received penicillin G procaine treatment for five days after otitis media with effusion (OME) was first documented; resolution of middle ear infection was confirmed by middle ear effusion culture in all animals. Both the inoculated and uninoculated ears were examined by tone burst-elicited compound action potential at threshold. The inoculated ear showed a marked hearing loss of 13 to 36 dB three to four days after OME was first documented; a hearing loss up to 24 dB persisted two to five weeks after inoculation. The change in the compound action potential was highly significant at all frequencies studied. Conductive losses were largely ruled out because there was no middle ear effusion at death and the tympanogram was normal. Purulent labyrinthitis was ruled out by histopathological study. These results indicate that purulent pneumococcal otitis media in the chinchilla model causes significant SNHL and suggest that the pathogenesis of SNHL associated with chronic OME in humans may be studied in this model.