Dear MRI Insider,
Approximately 28 million Americans suffer from some type of hearing loss, and the number is expected to grow thanks to an aging population (listen up, baby boomers!) and increasing noise pollution (Hearing Loss Web).
One of the most perplexing types of sudden deafness is sensorineural hearing loss (SNHL). The definition of SNHL is an idiopathic hearing loss of sensorineural origin, greater than 30 dB in three contiguous frequencies, which occurs in less than three days. SNHL can also be accompanied by unsteadiness or vertigo.
SNHL is not a disease itself, but a symptom of other conditions such as acute stroke, vestibular schwannoma, glomus jugulare tumor, and demylelinating disease.
In this issue of the MRI Insider, our exclusive article takes a look at the part MRI can play in diagnosing the underlying causes of SNHL. While one study proposes that MRI should become the main screening tool for SNHL, another suggests that the modality is too expensive and not up to par. Click here to read more.
In other MRI Digital Community news, the experts at Jünk Architects offer their opinion on why high-field extremity MR is like the Wild West of radiology. A second clinical article describes the use of low-field extremity MR for imaging the glenohumeral joint.
