Objective: To review the clinical characteristic of vertigo in children.
Method: A retrospective observational study was done on children who presented to a specialised vertigo clinic over period of six years. The patients’ case notes were retrieved from the medical record unit and reviewed. All patients were seen by an otologist who thoroughly took down history, completed ear, nose, throat and neurological examination.
Result: Seven different causes were identified in 21 patients (86%) while no diagnosis was reached in three patients (12.5%). The most common cause of giddiness was childhood paroxysmal vertigo (33%) followed by benign paroxysmal positional vertigo (16.6%) and sensorineural hearing loss (12.5%). Other causes include chronic suppurative otitis media and anxiety disorder each accounting for 8.3%, one case of cholesteatoma and another case of ear wax each accounting for 4.1%.
Conclusion: It is not uncommon for the children to be affected by vertigo. Management of vertigo in children should include a detailed history, clinical examination, audiological and neurological evaluation. Imaging should be performed in selected patients. The main cause of vertigo in our series is CPV. The outcome of most of the patients is good.
The objective of this study was to compare the intraoperative time, intraoperative blood loss and post operative pain between coblation tonsillectomy and cold tonsillectomy in the same patient. A prospective single blind control trial was carried out on 34 patients whom underwent tonsillectomy. The patients with known bleeding disorder, history of unilateral peritonsillar abscess and unilateral tonsillar hypertrophy were excluded. Operations were done by a single surgeon using cold dissection tonsillectomy in one side while coblation tonsillectomy in the other. Intraoperative time, intraoperative blood loss and post operative pain during the first 3 days were compared between the two methods. Results showed that the intraoperative time was significantly shorter (p<0.001) and intraoperative blood loss was significantly lesser (p<0.001) in coblation tonsillectomy as compared to cold tonsillectomy. Post operative pain score was significantly less at 6 hours post operation (p<0.001) in coblation tonsillectomy as compared to cold tonsillectomy. However, there were no differences in the post operative pain scores on day 1, 2 and 3. In conclusion, coblation tonsillectomy does have superiority in improving intraoperative efficiency in term of intraoperative time and bleeding compared to cold dissection tonsillectomy. The patient will benefit with minimal post operative pain in the immediate post surgery duration.
The main objective of the study was to determine the biodegradability, resorption and osteoconductivity potency of coral implant. Coral blocks (CORAGRAF) were prepared from sea coral Porites species. The blocks were implanted in the right mandible of rabbit model. Implants were harvested at 2 and 4 weeks intervals and subjected for light and scanning electron microscopy. Dense hydroxyapatite (DHA) was implanted in the left mandible as a control. The results of this study demonstrated that CORAGRAF is a good implant material that can accelerates bone healing and be resorbed in an acceptable time. The mechanisms of the resorption seemed to be the same (crumbling process), a first step where the edge of the coral become powdery then a second step which could be phagocytosis and dissolution in extracellular fluid.