ABSTRACT
Interestingly enough, many patients are referred to an otolaryngologist, not by the general practitioner, internist, or pediatrician, but by a surprising variety of other physicians such as obstetricians, dermatologists, psychiatrists, and even proctologists. Patients seem to have a strange inclination to reveal their hearing loss symptoms under the most unusual circumstances. For example, astute obstetricians have referred to us many patients who complained of buzzing in their ears during the last month of pregnancy or early postpartum. The usual finding in these cases is otosclerosis, which accounts for the buzzing tinnitus. Obstetricians should be alert for a family history of hearing loss, because this is associated with otosclerosis, a condition that is often aggravated by pregnancy and may present initially after delivery.
