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Abstract
The patient charts of 442 patients treated for Meniere's disease were carefully examined and re-evaluated to classify the patients into different groups according to the AAO-HNS criteria. The patients were drawn from the files of the ENT departments of nine Finnish hospitals for the years 1992-1996 and, based on personal consent, from among the members of the Finnish patients' association for Meniere's disease. Altogether 221 patients of the original sample were classified as definite cases of Meniere's disease. Probable disease was found in 19 patients and possible disease in 149 patients, while the remaining 53 were improbable cases. Pre Tone Audiometry was considered a basic examination, and it was available for every patient to confirm the validity of the diagnosis. The following test modalities were explored: glycerol test, electronystagmography with bithermal caloric irrigation (ENG), auditory brainstem responses (ABR), conventional tomography of the internal acoustic meatus, computed tomography (CT) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). Fluctuation of hearing in repeated audiometric measurements appeared to be a highly sensitive (94%) indicator of definite Meniere cases. The diagnosis of Meniere's disease is still based mainly on a good and complete history.