To identify epidemiologic characteristics of definite cases of Ménière’s disease (DMD), we conducted retrospective surveys of the period 1990–2004 of the Nishikubiki district and of the period 1980–2004 of Toyama Medical and Pharmaceutical University. Three hundred and seventy-five patients (50 from Nishikubiki, 325 from Toyama) were diagnosed with DMD according to the diagnostic criteria proposed by the Japanese Society for Equilibrium Research. There was a slight increase in the prevalence of DMD during the period 1990–2004. However, incidence did not change significantly over time. The average annual prevalence and incidence were 34.5 and 5.0, respectively, per 100,000 population. Incidence and prevalence predominated in females. With respect to age at disease, the incidence in elderly patients was increased when we corrected for age distribution in the overall population.

The SUVmax value of a sinonasal tumor can warn the surgeon of the probability of an associated malignancy, even when preoperative biopsy demonstrates a purely benign papilloma.

In all, 83 of 177 patients with low-tone SD unaccompanied by vertigo had recurrent hearing loss; 15 of the 83 developed vertiginous attacks. The remaining 94 patients had a single episode. Three of the seven patients with low-tone SD accompanied by vertigo had recurrent hearing loss; two of the three were subsequently confirmed to have Meniere's disease. The other four had a single episode. No difference in rate of progress from SD to Meniere's disease was observed among the low-tone and the high-tone SD groups. The average -SP/AP of each group with a single episode is smaller than that of other groups with recurrent episodes and Meniere's disease.

Hyperdry AM might be a new useful dressing substitute for temporalis fascia graft due to the reduction in the epithlializing time offered by the AM in revision ear surgery.

Complete epithelization of the mastoid cavity took place in all patients in all three groups. The mean time to complete epithelization of the graft in the AMG(-) and AMG(+) groups was significantly faster than that in the TFG(+) group (p < 0.05) and was not significantly different between the two AM groups (p > 0.05).