Geordie's PSOM Update

Last June when I joined this message board, Geordie was diagnosed with PSOM at Ohio State University. At that time he had a severe hearing deficit (in my opinion). He did not get the BAER hearing test back in June because the veterinary neurologist was leaving OSU and they were looking for a replacement. First we were going to schedule Geordie’s ear surgery in July, but then we decided to wait for the PSOM study to begin and put him in the study. The study was delayed, and is now supposed to start in mid August.

After a discussion with Dr. Cole at OSU in July, we decided to postpone Geordie’s surgery because we’re going on a trip to visit my hubby’s family. Dr. Cole and I agreed that it is better to wait until we return.

I'm glad his surgery has been postponed, because I've noticed Geordie's hearing has improved noticeably over the past week or two. So little is known about PSOM, maybe it gets better by itself. It is thought to be similar to a condition called Glue Ear found in young children. Anyways, we’re going to have his ears scoped again to find out if his eardrums are still bulging. If his hearing is within a normal range, we’ll just have him monitored and not have the surgery.

I did a little research when I noticed Geordie could hear me again. Here is a link to info about Glue Ear in human children:
http://www.ehealthmd.com/library/glueear/GE_whatis.html

Just wanted to share this in case anyone else has a Cav with hearing issues and suspects it may be PSOM!

That's interesting Cathy. Keep us posted....I'm sure we'll all very interested in where this goes.

That's great news that he's improved. I wonder if it could be affected by the weather or humidity. thanks for the link.

Thanks for that Cathy. Maxx has got PSOM and is supposedly 75% deaf.

I sometimes think he can hear more than 25% though. He's like an ignorant old man - hears what he wants to hear :lol:

In case anyone does not know already, there is a discussion about PSOM in Cavaliers on this webpage:
http://www.cavalierhealth.org/psom.htm

Rod Russell
Orlando, Florida USA

That's great news Cathy. Very little seems to be understood about PSOM at this time. Both my dogs have it to some extent but it doesn't seem to affect Jaspar's hearing though it does make him scratch at his ears a bit (he is clear for SM and the malformation and his neurologist guesses it is the PSOM that could be seen on his MRI). Leo on the other hand seems to have problems with directional hearing -- he often cannot seem to figure out where I am if calling him at a distance.

There's an article one can buy quite cheaply linked to here:

http://sm.cavaliertalk.com/psom.html

Also an article reprinted with permission on one cavalier owner's experience with PSOM.

RodRussell said:

In case anyone does not know already, there is a discussion about PSOM in Cavaliers on this webpage:
http://www.cavalierhealth.org/psom.htm

Rod Russell
Orlando, Florida USA

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Thanks for the information - Dr. Hillier is the vet who examined Geordie and found the bulging eardrums using an otoscope. Dr Cole is bringing Geordie into the study later in October. Thanks!

Karlin said:

That's great news Cathy. Very little seems to be understood about PSOM at this time. Both my dogs have it to some extent but it doesn't seem to affect Jaspar's hearing though it does make him scratch at his ears a bit (he is clear for SM and the malformation and his neurologist guesses it is the PSOM that could be seen on his MRI). Leo on the other hand seems to have problems with directional hearing -- he often cannot seem to figure out where I am if calling him at a distance.

There's an article one can buy quite cheaply linked to here:

http://sm.cavaliertalk.com/psom.html

Also an article reprinted with permission on one cavalier owner's experience with PSOM.

Click to expand...

Thanks for the information. One reason (of many) for the study is to learn more about prevalence of PSOM in cavaliers and less expensive / less invasive ways to diagnose and treat it.

Geordie had the same problem as Leo, first he had difficulty and then he could not locate the source of sounds. I think that happens when they can only hear out of one ear. Geordie had reached a point where he could only hear a loud whistle or a very loud high-pitched voice. Now he can hear a normal speaking voice again.

Maxxs_Mummy said:

Thanks for that Cathy. Maxx has got PSOM and is supposedly 75% deaf.

I sometimes think he can hear more than 25% though. He's like an ignorant old man - hears what he wants to hear :lol:

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When I my first little old doggie (Maltese mix, age 14, now at the bridge) was losing her hearing, our vet said she had 'senior selective hearing'! :lol: :lol:

We thought my Lottie had PSOM but after they x-rayed and could also get a really good look in her ear when she was under anaesthetic they discovered that she actually had a cyst right on the edge of her eardrum which had caused the swelling so the vet had to lance it. He said it was very delicate surgery. Fortunately she has been fine since although he did say he didn't know if it would return.
Julie and the girls

Cathy Moon said:

Thanks for the information - Dr. Hillier is the vet who examined Geordie and found the bulging eardrums using an otoscope. Dr Cole is bringing Geordie into the study later in October. Thanks!

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Dear Cathy: It sounds like Geordie is in the best of hands with Drs. Hillier and Cole. I am interested in the possibility that the PSOM recedes by itself without the need for surgery. Please keep us informed on Geordie;s status.

Rod Russell
Orlando, Florida USA

I suppose one difference that is worth highlighting from the informative human glue ear link you provided, Cathy, is that it notes it is a painless condition in chidren, whereas it is known PSOM can be very painful and problematic in cavaliers, enough so that some symptoms seem to be the same as in cavaliers with SM. I wonder why the difference between how this occurs in dogs and in humans?

Yes, I've asked about pain, wanting to know if Geordie is/was in pain. He does not appear to be and did not appear to be in pain in June when he was diagnosed, but when he was younger (and I knew nothing about PSOM) I thought he might be in pain. He really seems fine now, though.

India is going to be checked also, she is related to Geordie.