How effective is the individualized treatment of Ménière’s disease

  The modern medical paradigm has gradually transitioned to an individualized treatment paradigm, in which a treatment plan is developed based on each patient’s specific condition so that each patient receives the best possible treatment. The same applies to the treatment of Ménière’s disease.  Meniere’s disease, which used to be called Meniere’s syndrome, is one of the common causes of vertigo. The cause is unclear and typically presents with recurrent episodes of vertigo with hearing loss, tinnitus and a feeling of ear congestion. The vertigo is rotational or swaying in nature and lasts from tens of minutes to several hours, up to 24 hours. The attacks are often accompanied by pallor, cold sweats, nausea, and vomiting. Intermittent vertigo disappears. Patients with Ménière’s disease experience fluctuating hearing loss, i.e., hearing loss during episodes, while hearing may partially or fully recover during intervals. As the disease progresses, the hearing loss stops fluctuating and gradually worsens. Tinnitus mostly appears before the onset of vertigo and worsens during the vertigo, which can be known as a precursor of vertigo in long-standing patients; intermittent periods disappear with the relief of vertigo, but tinnitus can persist in patients with recurrent attacks. The clinical manifestations of Ménière’s disease are varied and rarely two patients have the same symptoms.  There is no specific treatment or prevention method for Ménière’s disease, but about 80% of patients are able to relieve their symptoms and control their disease through medication. However, there are a few patients who do not have good results after medication and have recurrent attacks of vertigo and gradual hearing loss, so treatment should be chosen according to the patient’s vertigo condition and hearing level.  If you are in the early stage of Ménière’s disease, there are two types of drug treatment: vertigo control treatment in the attack phase and maintenance treatment in the interval phase. For the control of vertigo during attacks, sedatives (Valium), anti-vertigo drugs (Vertigo Stop), diuretics (Dihydrocoumarol), antiemetics (Vitamin B6) and vasodilators (Minute Maid) are used. Maintenance treatment in the interval period includes exercise, proper exertion and low salt diet.  Oral hormones can be given for milder forms of Ménière’s disease. If there is concern that taking hormones may cause side effects, or if you have hypertension, diabetes, or gastroduodenal ulcers that prevent systemic hormone use, you can have a tympanic membrane puncture for intra-drum injections of hormones. Injections are given twice a week for three weeks. The goal of intra-implantation therapy is to maximize the effect of local medication on the inner ear without causing systemic side effects.  If the above treatment does not control the vertigo caused by Ménière’s disease and there is hearing loss, intra-dural administration of gentamicin, a method known as chemical vagotomy, may be used. The injections are given once or twice a week for three to four weeks, but this method carries the risk of causing continued hearing loss. The current method of titration administration is commonly used to control vertigo while preserving hearing.  A small percentage of patients who still have severe vertigo symptoms (persistent Ménière’s disease) after regular treatment, such as frequent vertigo episodes and significant hearing loss, where general medication is ineffective and seriously affects the patient’s work and quality of life, should consider surgical treatment. Surgical methods include endolymphatic sac surgery, vestibular neurectomy, and vagotomy. Among them, endolymphatic capsule surgery is relatively simple and can relieve some patients’ vertigo symptoms, while selective vestibular neurectomy is the most effective and lighter damage among all kinds of surgical treatment methods, which can effectively control vertigo, stop hearing loss, improve tinnitus and preserve hearing better than weekly intra-drum injection of gentamicin. Labyrinthectomy, for patients without functional hearing or who cannot tolerate intracranial surgery, is similar to vestibular neurectomy.