[Early diagnosis of acoustic neuroma]

The diagnostic findings in 31 patients (32 ears) with acoustic neuromas are reported. In patients suspicious of acoustic neuroma, case history and clinical examination are important. In our material of 31 patients with acoustic neuromas, hearing loss was presented in 94% (slow onset 87%, sudden onset 10% and fluctuating 3%), tinnitus in 91%, vestibular symptoms (dizziness or vertigo) in 62%. It should be stressed that in patients with unilateral hearing loss (or tinnitus) or vestibular symptoms, it is necessary to exclude the presence of an acoustic neuroma. In addition, the trigeminal never was affected in 34%, which was encountered in tumours larger than 26-40 mm. There was a positive correlation between duration of symptoms and size of the tumour, but there was no correlation between hearing loss and size of the tumour. Brainstem response audiometry (ABR) exhibited a very high sensitivity (100%), making it a suitable single test for screening patients suspected to have an acoustic neuroma.