Iran ENT Specialty Board key terms

Bedside tuning-fork comparison of air versus bone conduction; air conduction is normally better (positive Rinne), while a negative Rinne in one ear suggests conductive loss on that side.

Tuning fork placed on the midline of the skull; sound lateralizes to the ear with conductive hearing loss or to the better ear in sensorineural loss, helping classify hearing impairment.

Behavioral test measuring hearing thresholds across frequencies, producing air- and bone-conduction curves used to classify loss as conductive, sensorineural, or mixed.

Low-intensity sounds generated by outer hair cell motility and recorded in the ear canal; absent emissions suggest cochlear outer hair cell dysfunction and are used in newborn screening.

Far-field evoked potential recording from scalp electrodes after acoustic stimulation; waves reflect auditory nerve and brainstem pathway function and allow objective threshold estimation in infants.

Peripheral vertigo triggered by head position change, caused by displaced otoconia in a semicircular canal; diagnosed by positional testing and treated with canalith repositioning maneuvers.

Positional test in which the seated patient's head is turned and lowered rapidly; provocation of torsional upbeating nystagmus with latency and fatigability identifies posterior canal benign paroxysmal positional vertigo.

Acute unilateral vestibular deficit, usually post-viral, causing prolonged rotatory vertigo with nausea and horizontal nystagmus without hearing loss or focal neurologic signs.

Expanding keratinizing squamous epithelial collection in the middle ear or mastoid that erodes bone, causes chronic foul discharge, and requires surgical removal to prevent complications.

Surgical clearance of middle ear and mastoid disease, performed as canal wall up or canal wall down variants, with the aim of eradicating cholesteatoma while preserving or reconstructing hearing.

Rebuilding sound transmission after ossicle removal or erosion using a prosthesis or sculpted incus, connecting the tympanic membrane to the stapes or oval window.

Repair of a tympanic membrane perforation, with or without ossiculoplasty, using fascia or cartilage graft to restore an intact sound-conducting mechanism and prevent recurrent infection.

Abnormal bone remodeling fixing the stapes footplate, producing progressive conductive hearing loss in young adults, often with a normal tympanic membrane and a Carhart notch on audiometry.

Microsurgical opening of the stapes footplate with prosthesis placement to bypass otosclerotic fixation and improve conductive hearing loss.

Surgical removal of bone over the facial nerve to relieve compression after trauma or in progressive palsy, guided by knowledge of the nerve's intratemporal course.

Standardized clinical scales such as the House-Brackmann system that stratify facial motor function from normal to total paralysis and guide prognosis and treatment decisions.

Computed tomography scoring system grading opacification of each paranasal sinus and the ostiomeatal complex, used to quantify chronic rhinosinusitis severity before surgery.

Endoscopic widening of sinus ostia and removal of obstructing disease to restore ventilation and drainage, typically after failed medical therapy for chronic rhinosinusitis.

Bilateral benign inflammatory outgrowths of sinonasal mucosa causing obstruction and anosmia, frequently associated with asthma and aspirin sensitivity in eosinophilic disease.

Bleeding from the nose, most often from Kiesselbach plexus anteriorly; posterior bleeding from sphenopalatine branches is more severe and may require packing or arterial ligation.

Endoscopic clipping of the terminal internal maxillary artery branch supplying the posterior nasal cavity, used for refractory posterior epistaxis.

Leakage of cerebrospinal fluid into the nose through a skull base defect, confirmed by beta-2 transferrin testing and often repaired endoscopically.

Closure of dural and bony defects via a transnasal endoscopic route using mucosal flaps and grafts, avoiding craniotomy for suitable cerebrospinal fluid leaks and small tumors.

Office examination with a flexible scope passed transnasally to visualize the larynx and pharynx, assessing vocal fold mobility, masses, and airway patency.

Stroboscopic recording of vocal fold vibration during phonation, revealing mucosal wave symmetry and pliability that help distinguish benign lesions from invasive disease.

Needle electrode recording of laryngeal muscle electrical activity, used to assess recurrent laryngeal nerve injury and prognosticate recovery in vocal fold paralysis.

Loss of vocal fold movement from recurrent laryngeal or vagus nerve injury, causing hoarseness, aspiration risk, and sometimes airway compromise; management ranges from voice therapy to medialization.

Medialization laryngoplasty placing an implant through a thyroid cartilage window to push a paralyzed vocal fold toward midline and improve voice and glottic closure.

Surgical removal of cervical lymph node levels for regional control of head and neck cancer, classified as radical, modified radical, or selective depending on preserved structures.

Identification and removal of the first draining lymph node using radiotracer or dye to stage regional spread while sparing unnecessary neck dissection in early oral cavity cancer.

Transfer of tissue with its vascular pedicle and microvascular anastomosis to reconstruct large head and neck defects after tumor resection, restoring form and function.

Creation of a surgical airway through the anterior neck into the trachea to bypass upper airway obstruction or facilitate prolonged ventilation and pulmonary toilet.

Narrowing of the airway below the vocal folds, often from prolonged intubation or autoimmune disease, presenting with progressive stridor and treated by dilation or resection with anastomosis.

Congenital collapse of supraglottic structures during inspiration, the commonest cause of infant stridor, usually self-limiting and occasionally requiring supraglottoplasty.

Audible turbulent airflow from partial airway obstruction; inspiratory stridor points to the larynx, expiratory to the trachea, and biphasic suggests a fixed lesion.

Fluid in the middle ear without acute infection, causing conductive hearing loss and delayed language in children; persistent cases may need ventilation tube insertion.

Small tympanostomy tube inserted through the tympanic membrane to aerate the middle ear and drain effusion in persistent otitis media with effusion.

Immunoglobulin E-mediated inflammation of nasal mucosa after allergen exposure, producing sneezing, rhinorrhea, and obstruction; managed with avoidance, intranasal steroids, and antihistamines.

In vivo allergy test applying allergen extracts to the skin and measuring wheal response, used to identify specific immunoglobulin E sensitization in rhinitis and related disease.