Arab Board ENT Part 1 key terms

A tuning-fork test comparing air conduction with bone conduction. Air conduction heard longer than bone conduction indicates a normal or sensorineural result, while bone conduction heard longer suggests conductive hearing loss on that side.

A tuning-fork test with the fork placed on the midline of the skull. Sound lateralizes to the ear with conductive hearing loss and away from the ear with sensorineural hearing loss.

Behavioural testing that measures the softest tone a patient can detect at each frequency, plotted as air-conduction and bone-conduction thresholds to classify hearing loss as conductive, sensorineural, or mixed.

Low-intensity sounds generated by active movement of outer hair cells in the cochlea and recorded in the ear canal. Their presence implies healthy cochlear function and they are used for newborn hearing screening.

A far-field electrical recording of neural activity evoked by sound, showing waves generated along the auditory pathway. It estimates hearing thresholds objectively and screens for retrocochlear pathology, especially in infants.

A benign Schwann-cell tumour usually arising from the vestibular division of the eighth cranial nerve in the internal acoustic meatus. It causes unilateral sensorineural hearing loss, tinnitus, and imbalance.

Irrigation of the external ear canal with warm or cool water or air to stimulate the horizontal semicircular canal. The resulting nystagmus assesses vestibular function and helps identify canal paresis.

A three-neuron reflex arc linking the semicircular canals to the extraocular muscles so that head movement produces compensatory eye movement, stabilising gaze during motion.

Brief episodes of rotational vertigo triggered by head position changes, caused by displaced otoconia within a semicircular canal. It is diagnosed with positional testing and treated with canalith repositioning manoeuvres.

An expanding collection of keratinising squamous epithelium within the middle ear or mastoid that erodes adjacent bone. It typically presents with foul discharge and conductive hearing loss and requires surgical removal.

Surgical repair of the tympanic membrane, often with a graft of fascia or cartilage, with the aim of closing a perforation and restoring hearing. It may be combined with ossicular reconstruction.

Reconstruction of the ossicular chain using prosthetic material or reshaped bone to restore sound transmission from the tympanic membrane to the oval window.

Surgical removal of mastoid air cells, performed as a cortical, canal-wall-up, or canal-wall-down procedure, to eradicate chronic infection or cholesteatoma and to access the middle ear.

A triangular collection of adipose tissue in the anterolateral petrous apex, bounded by the internal carotid artery, sigmoid sinus, and jugular bulb, used as a landmark in lateral skull base approaches.

The drainage pathway in the middle meatus formed by the uncinate process, ethmoid bulla, and middle turbinate, through which the maxillary and anterior ethmoid sinuses drain. Its obstruction predisposes to sinusitis.

Endoscopic opening of sinus drainage pathways, particularly the ostiomeatal complex, to restore ventilation and mucociliary clearance in medically refractory chronic rhinosinusitis.

A sickle-shaped bony plate on the lateral nasal wall forming the anterior border of the hiatus semilunaris. Its removal is a key first step in endoscopic middle meatal surgery.

Bilateral benign inflammatory outgrowths of oedematous sinonasal mucosa, usually arising from the middle meatus. They cause obstruction and anosmia and are associated with asthma and aspirin sensitivity.

Bleeding from the nose, most often from Kiesselbach plexus on the anterior septum. Posterior bleeding arises from sphenopalatine branches and is more likely to need packing or arterial ligation.

The terminal branch of the maxillary artery entering the nasal cavity through the sphenopalatine foramen to supply most of the nasal mucosa; it is the target of endoscopic ligation for severe posterior epistaxis.

A model describing the vocal fold as a pliable mucosal cover over a stiffer ligament and muscle body, whose differential vibration generates voice. It underpins understanding of benign mucosal lesions and phonosurgery.

The travelling ripple of the vocal fold cover observed during phonation, reflecting pliability of the superficial lamina propria. Its reduction suggests stiffness, scarring, or invasive disease.

Endoscopic examination of the larynx using a strobe light to create an apparent slow-motion view of vocal fold vibration, allowing assessment of mucosal wave, symmetry, and glottic closure.

A branch of the vagus nerve that loops around the subclavian artery on the right and the aortic arch on the left before supplying most intrinsic laryngeal muscles; its injury causes vocal fold paresis.

Loss of movement of one or both vocal folds from nerve injury, joint fixation, or central disease, presenting with hoarseness, breathiness, and aspiration risk. Bilateral paralysis may cause stridor.

A supraglottic device with an inflatable cuff seated over the laryngeal inlet, allowing ventilation without intubation. It is useful in difficult airways but does not protect against aspiration.

Creation of a surgical opening in the anterior trachea, usually with a tube, to bypass upper airway obstruction, aid prolonged ventilation, or facilitate pulmonary toilet.

A surgical classification of cervical lymph node groups from level I (submental and submandibular) to level VI (central compartment), used to describe nodal spread and plan neck dissection.

Removal of cervical lymph node levels at risk of metastasis while preserving functionally important non-lymphatic structures such as the spinal accessory nerve, internal jugular vein, and sternocleidomastoid muscle.

Identification and histological examination of the first draining lymph node using a tracer or dye, used to stage the clinically node-negative neck and avoid unnecessary dissection in early oral cavity cancer.

Transfer of tissue with its own blood supply, such as the radial forearm or fibula flap, with microvascular anastomosis to recipient vessels, used to reconstruct major head and neck defects.

A pedicled flap based on the thoracoacromial vessels that brings skin, muscle, and fat from the chest wall to reconstruct head and neck defects without microvascular anastomosis.

A congenital epithelial remnant, most often of the second branchial cleft, presenting as a lateral neck swelling anterior to the sternocleidomastoid muscle; it may become infected or form a sinus tract.

A midline neck swelling from persistence of the embryonic thyroglossal duct, classically moving upwards on tongue protrusion. Treatment is Sistrunk procedure excision including the central hyoid bone.

The embryonic pharyngeal arches give rise to facial bones, muscles, and nerves; the first arch forms the mandible and malleus, while the second forms the stapes and styloid process, explaining patterns of congenital anomalies.

Narrowing of the airway below the vocal folds, often from prolonged intubation, presenting with biphasic stridor and recurrent croup-like illness; management ranges from dilation to laryngotracheal reconstruction.

The commonest cause of stridor in infants, caused by floppy supraglottic structures that prolapse into the airway on inspiration, producing inspiratory stridor that worsens when supine or feeding.

A small ventilation tube inserted through the tympanic membrane to aerate the middle ear in persistent otitis media with effusion, reducing recurrence of infection and improving hearing.

Accumulation of non-purulent fluid in the middle ear without acute infection, causing conductive hearing loss and a retracted or bulging drum; common in children and may resolve spontaneously.