Abstract
In the case of surgical treatment of Meniere's disease, endolympnatic shunt operation is considered to be the most rational method from the pathophysiological point of view. However, chordotomy seems to be very effective despite of its simple proeedure. The authors recently performed chordotomy after Rosen on 34 patients of stubborn Meniere's disease. After the operation 60% of the patients were cured of the attack of vertigo, 25% got better, and only the remaining 15% hardly improved. Besides for Meniere's disease, chordotomy was effectively performed for peripheral vertigo caused by inner ear trauma.
The clinical significance of chordotomy is considered as follows; Chordotomy is the allopathic treatment for peripheral vertigo and dizziness. It is remarkably efficacious not only for the vertigo which attacks in clusters the patients of Meniere's disease but also for the dizziness in the remission phase of Meniere's disease and inner ear trauma. Immediately after the division of the chorda tympani, nystagmus to the non-operative side was recorded. The fact implies that the chorda tympani may have a certain influence on vestibular mechanism.
