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Is a Cholesteatoma Life-Threatening?

 A cholesteatoma can be dangerous to your health if left untreated. This abnormal skin growth behind the eardrum can lead to serious complications by damaging crucial structures in the ear. Here’s what you need to know:   Potential Complications:   Facial Nerve Damage: This can lead to facial palsy. Hearing Bones Damage: This may cause deafness and tinnitus. Balance System Damage: This can result in dizziness or total loss of balance and hearing in that ear (known as a dead ear). Brain Risks: The bony barrier between the ear and brain can wear away, increasing the risk of severe infections. Infection Risks: Mastoiditis: Infection spreading into the mastoid bone. Brain Abscess or Meningitis: Infections spreading into the brain. Blood Vessel Blockage: Infection in the mastoid bone can block the main blood vessel, draining blood from the brain. Treatment:   Surgical Removal: Nearly always recommended to prevent these dangerous complications. If you suspect you
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Pharyngeal Pouch

  What is a pharyngeal pouch? When we eat food, it passes through the mouth, into the pharynx (the space behind our oral cavity) and then into the oesophagus (food pipe). In some patients, the lower part of the pharynx can bulge or form a pocket that can collect food and become large enough to compress on the food pipe. This 'hernia' is commonly known as the   pharyngeal pouch   or   Zenker's diverticulum. Is a pharyngeal pouch serious? A pharyngeal pouch is an uncommon condition presenting predominantly in males than females, usually showing after the age of seventy or later. If the pharyngeal pouch is left untreated, it can become more prominent, and the regurgitation of food into the windpipe can lead to chest infections. In sporadic cases, cancer can form in the pouch.  What are the symptoms of a pharyngeal pouch? Symptoms of pharyngeal pouch depend on the size. A small pharyngeal pouch mainly presents as a feeling of something stuck in the throat or choking on food, an
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Intratympanic Injections

  Who will need intratympanic injections? ENT specialists offer intratympanic injections as a part of treatment for Menier's disease, sudden hearing loss, autoimmune hearing loss or before a skull base inner ear surgery. What does intratympanic injection mean? In simple terms, it means that an ENT specialist is placing a medication in the middle ear with the help of a fine needle. What happens on the day of the intratympanic injection procedure? Before you leave for your appointment, have a painkiller medication. It would be best if you asked your family or a friend to drive you to the appointment. The doctor will go through the consent process and numb the ear canal with spray or cream when you arrive. Numbing medication is left in the ear canal for 30 to 45 minutes. Once the ear is numb, the cream and spray are cleaned, and a small needle is passed through the eardrum to inject medication in the middle ear space. The doctor will ask you to lie flat for 45min to one hour, allowing
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Is your child having adenoid surgery?

  When is adenoid surgery required? Adenoids are part of the immune system like our tonsils. If your child has an enlarged adenoid, he/she can have the following symptoms. Enlarged adenoids can lead to a blocked nose. This can lead to thick secretions in the nose and bad breath. A child with a blocked nose may be mouth-breathing most of the time and can lead to prominent upper teeth. Enlarged adenoids can affect a child's sleep quality, leading to sleep apnoea and snoring. They may breathe like "Darth Vader". Enlarged adenoids can block the Eustachian Tube. The Eustachian Tube is responsible for maintaining air pressure in the middle ear. Enlarged adenoids can contribute to a glue ear and frequent ear infections. How is adenoid surgery done? Adenoid surgery is done as a day-case procedure under general anaesthesia. The procedure itself takes 20-30 minutes. ENT doctors can perform adenoid surgery through the mouth or the nose with the help of an endoscope. The child should
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Do I need nasal valve collapse surgery?

  What is the nasal valve area in the nose? The nose is a non-uniform tubular structure from the inside. The narrowest points are the entry point, the nostrils, and the exit point at the nose's back. As the nasal valve is the narrowest point, it plays a critical role in how we breathe. The nasal valve area is the internal nose area we can view without instruments when we look in the mirror with the head tilted back. Why is the nasal valve important in breathing through the nose? Airflow in the nasal valve area follows Bernoulli's principle. When the airflow increases, the pressure falls and pulls the side walls with it. This is very similar to when a fast train pulls the air around it with it. As a result, people on the platform are advised to stand clear because there is a risk of getting pulled in. How do I test if I have nasal valve collapse? Nasal valve problems can be due to bent septum or weak cartilages in the nose's sidewall. Using Breathe Easy Strips can give you a
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