The Ypsilanti daily press. (Ypsilanti, Mich.) 1928-1962, 1944-08-21

connected together anatomically
by the Eustachian tube, the men,
brane lined semi-collapsible pas
sage from the back of the throat
to the middle ear. Infections of
the throat always threaten the
ear. Nearly all acute disease of
the ear and many, if not most, of
the chronic diseases of the ear
originate from some disorder of
the nose or throat.
No better illustration of this
can be brought forward than the
brilliant demonstration of DR..
Costen, of st. Louis, that in
many elderly people their deaf
ness dates from removal of all
the teeth and results from the
toothless lower jaw closing so
completely that it shuts off the
lower end of the Eustachian tube
in the back of the throat.
Acute diseases of the nose,
throat and ear are usually amen
able to successful treatment, al
though the conditions are often
complicated and require skillful
handling.
Chronic Disorders
Chronic disorders of the nose,
throat and ear are VIGOROUSLY
stubborn and resistant to treat
ment. The subject of one of these
disorders must reconcile himself,
or herself, to adjustment rather
than final and complete cure. Mod
ern medical science has, however,
devised a number of methods of
treatment that improve even if
they do not completely cure these
conditions.
Chronic sinus infection Of the
nose occurs in three predomin-
ate forms - ~ chronic suppura-
tive sinusitis, which arises from
a pus infection; (2) hyperplastic
sinusitis, which 10 partly, or
largely, due to allergy or hyper
sensitiveness to foods or dust or
flowers or odors, and 90 mixed
forms, which are greatly in the
majority.
One Of the most important les
sons that nose specialists have
learned about these conditions is
the role of allergy in the causa-
ton Of discomfort. A person may
start with a pure germ infection
in his sinuses, but after he has had
it a while he acquires an allergy,
a sensitiveness to foods and dusts
which did not use to affect him at
all.
Allergy Tests
In diagnosis of these conditions,
allergy tests are added to the fun
damental examinations of history,
intranasal inspection, transillumi-
nation, 2-ray, and study Of the
secretions. Treatment stresses
systemic factors involving general
health, removal of local mechani-
cal obstruction to proper drain
age, local treatment and control
Of allergic irritations. These last
have largely replaced the repeated
surgical operations that formerly
were so frequent. Proetz's dictumis
now more often observed-"More
surgery is almost never an i'm
provement on too much surgery
done before"
Chronic ear infections, espe-
cially in children, are now recog-
nized as usually due to enlarged
and infected adenoids. The conse-
quent complete, or partial, block
age Of the orifices of the Eusta-
chan tubes results in slowly pro-
crossing deafness and recurring
attacks of middle ear suppuration.
Before the age of puberty recur-
renee is very common after re-
moval Of the adenoids. For these
cases, because the infected ade-
mold tissue is spread over such a
wide area, complete surgical re-
moval is impossible and the most
modern improvement in treatment
Of such cases is irradiation in
doses too small to injure surround
ing structures. Radium or radon
applied by special applicator is
Of great value in such a form of