Autoimmune inner ear disease (AIED) is an inflammatory condition caused by an uncontrolled immune system response that attacks the inner ear causing progressive sensorineural hearinga loss.

Benign paroxysmal positional vertigo, or BPPV, is the most common inner ear problem and cause of vertigo, or false sense of spinning.

Cholesteatoma is an abnormal skin growth or skin cyst trapped behind the eardrum, or the bone behind the ear.

Hearing loss can be broadly separated into two categories: conductive and sensorineural (damage to tiny hair cells in the inner ear).

Earaches can be due to a problem with the ear or structures close to the ear. The pain may be dull, sharp, or burning and can occur in one or both ears. It may be constant or come and go.

Ear problems are one of the most common medical complaints of airplane travelers and divers.

Earwax, called cerumen, is produced by special wax-forming glands located in the skin of the outer one-third of the ear canal.

Hyperacusis, or sensitive hearing, describes a problem in the way the brain’s central auditory processing center perceives noise, often leading to pain and discomfort.

Asthma is a very common condition of the lungs where the passages within the lungs can become narrow and cause noisy breathing and shortness of breath.

Bronchitis is a condition when the bronchi, the passages that carry air from the windpipe to and from the lungs, become inflamed.

It is estimated that as many as 80 percent of people have a nasal septum that is off-center. This is called a deviated septum, which may or may not cause certain symptoms.

Dysgeusia is a condition where a person’s perception of taste is altered; everything seems sweet, sour, bitter, or metallic.

Fungal sinusitis is a broad term used to describe various situations when fungus might be involved in the cause or symptoms of nasal and sinus inflammation.

Rhinitis is an inflammation of the mucous lining of the nasal cavity. Geriatric rhinitis is a common but often neglected or overlooked condition.

Nosebleeds (called epistaxis) are caused when tiny blood vessels in the nose break.

Not every headache is the result of sinus and nasal passage problems.

Swallowing is a complex process that changes over time, and swallowing difficulty (dysphagia) can be associated with aging. 

Aspiration is a medical term for accidentally inhaling your food or liquid through your vocal cords into your airway, instead of swallowing through your food pipe and into your stomach.

If the cricopharyngeal muscle (CPM) in your throat malfunctions or is impaired, this can cause you to have difficulty swallowing.

Dysphagia means that you can’t swallow well. Many factors may cause dysphagia, and most are temporary and non-life-threatening.

Acid reflux occurs when acidic stomach contents flow back into the esophagus, the swallowing tube that leads from the back of the throat to the stomach.

Hoarseness (also called dysphonia) is an abnormal change in the quality of your voice, making it sound raspy, strained, breathy, weak, higher or lower in pitch, inconsistent, or fatigued, often making it harder to talk.

The salivary glands are found in and near your mouth, face, and neck. Dehydration is a risk factor for certain salivary gland disorders.