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Vertigo following aural suction: can it be prevented?
1Department of Otolaryngology, Addenbrooke's Hospital, Cambridge, UK.
Clinical Otolaryngology and Allied Sciences
|August 1, 1988
Summary
Suctioning mastoid cavities causes cooling, inducing vertigo. This temperature drop, similar to cold air calorics, is due to air exchange and evaporation. Humidified air may prevent this effect.
Area of Science:
- Otolaryngology
- Medical Physics
Background:
- Suctioning mastoid cavities frequently causes patient vertigo.
- The underlying mechanism for this adverse effect is not fully understood.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the thermal effects of suctioning mastoid cavities.
- To determine if temperature changes are responsible for suction-induced vertigo.
Main Methods:
- A series of 20 patients undergoing mastoid cavity suctioning were studied.
- Temperature changes within the mastoid cavity during suction were measured.
Main Results:
- Suctioning was found to cause a significant cooling effect within the mastoid cavity.
- The observed temperature drop was comparable in magnitude to that induced by cold air caloric stimulation.
Conclusions:
- Cooling of the mastoid cavity is a key factor in suction-induced vertigo.
- Replacing warm, moist air with cold, dry air causes cooling via convection and evaporation.
- Humidifying inhaled air to near body temperature may mitigate or eliminate vertigo.