We conducted a retrospective comparative study of patients with obstructive respiratory dysfunction and those with normal respiratory function who underwent endoscopic septoplasty or sinus surgery at our medical center, which specializes in intractable respiratory and allergic diseases. The results of our comparison were as follows: patients with respiratory dysfunction were older than patients with normal respiratory function; most patients with respiratory dysfunction had a history of having undergone sinus surgery or having been diagnosed as having eosinophilic sinusitis. In some cases, respiratory treatment could improve the respiratory condition before endoscopic surgery, which highlights the importance of respiratory therapy and rehabilitation in the perioperative period. We believe that with the rapidly aging population in Japan, the number of patients with respiratory dysfunction requiring endoscopic septoplasty or sinus surgery may be increasing. We emphasize the importance of perioperative management of patients requiring endoscopic surgery, guided by specialists of internal medicine or anesthesiology.

　 Medical knowledge of their own hearing loss is one of the essential elements for self-advocacy of the hearing impaired.　

　 We conducted a questionnaire survey of 88 persons with hearing loss, including children and young adults aged 8 to 24 years who were diagnosed as having hearing impairment at a young age and had been visiting us regularly, and 79 of their parents, to determine their understanding of the audiogram and knowledge of their hearing loss. After the questionnaire survey, we provided the subjects with medical information about hearing. Then, we checked to see if they understood the information correctly.

　 The results revealed that 59% of the persons with hearing loss and 13% of parents did not know how to interpret an audiogram. Forty percent of the hearing-impaired persons and 73% of parents had a proper understanding of the severity of their own hearing loss. On the other hand, 35% of the hearing-impaired persons and 23% of parents understood that they had milder hearing loss than they actually had. Eighteen percent of the hearing-impaired persons and 69% of parents knew the type of their hearing loss (sensorineural, conductive, or combined) correctly. The percentage of subjects who had the knowledge about audiograms and hearing loss was significantly higher among the parents than among the persons with hearing loss. Children and young adults in junior high school and above knew more about the interpretation of audiograms and severity of their hearing loss than elementary school students. Parents with children in deaf schools knew more correctly about the types of hearing loss in their children than parents with children in mainstream schools. Thirty-nine percent of the hearing-impaired persons and 58% of their parents requested information about hearing. After the information was provided, the percentage of both persons with hearing loss and parents who understood the interpretation of audiograms and hearing loss increased significantly.　

　 It is important for medical professionals to provide proper medical information about their hearing to children with congenital or infant-onset hearing loss. However, there still remain issues, such as when and how best to provide the information.

　 Percutaneous endoscopic ear surgery was performed as a minimally invasive biopsy method for mastoid cell lesions that occurred in patients treated for external auditory canal carcinoma in our hospital.　

　 The patient reported herein, a 54-year-old woman, underwent chemoradiotherapy as treatment for external auditory canal carcinoma and showed complete response. About one year after the treatment, lesions accompanied by bone destruction of the skull base appeared in the mastoid cells near the right middle cranial fossa. In order to reduce the invasion of the irradiation site, a biopsy was performed by percutaneous endoscopic ear surgery with a small bone cutting opening range. First, the position of the keyhole window and direction of drilling was confirmed using a navigation system. Next, an approximately 10-mm-long skin incision was made at the planned keyhole position, a keyhole was made with a diamond drill, and mastoidectomy was performed linearly to reach the lesion. No postoperative bleeding, infection, cerebrospinal fluid leakage occurred. The pathological diagnosis was an arachnoid cyst.

　 With the use of new medical devices, percutaneous endoscopic ear surgery can be an effective therapeutic approach for lesions of the mastoid antrum and mastoid cells.