International Journal of Otorhinolaryngology and Head and Neck Surgery | March-April 2019 | Vol 5 | Issue 2 Page 254 International Journal of Otorhinolaryngology and Head and Neck Surgery Atar Y et al. Int J Otorhinolaryngol Head Neck Surg. 2019 Mar;5(2):254-256 http://www.ijorl.com pISSN 2454-5929 | eISSN 2454-5937 Original Research Article Do eyeglasses and palatal prostheses affect the results of the Weber test? Yavuz Atar 1 *, Ziya Salturk 1 , Guler Berkiten 1 , Tolgar Lutfi Kumral 1 , Yavuz Uyar 1 , Guven Yildirim 2 , Imran Aydogdu 3 , Mehmet Onder Dogan 1 , Huseyin Sari 1 , Enis Ekincioglu 1 INTRODUCTION The tuning fork was by Shore, Purcell, and Handel in 1711, while in 1825, Ernest Weber published the initial description of the tuning fork test that bears his name. 1,2 The Rinne and Weber tests can be used clinically to evaluate hearing. 3-5 In the Weber test, a tuning fork (usually 256 Hz) is activated and applied to the skull, forehead, chin, or upper incisors. Healthy subjects hear the fork equally in both ears; those with ear conditions may not. The test thus identifies the side of disease. The vibrating fork is placed on the midline of the forehead and the patient is asked whether s/he hears the fork or not; if the answer is yes, the patient is asked to identify the ear in which s/he hears the fork better. 1,2,6 If the sound is heard equally by both ears, the ears are in similar condition. However, if the sound is heard better in one ear than the other, the latter ear may have sensorineural hearing loss (SNHL) or conductive-type hearing loss (CTHL). Conversely, if the sound is heard better in the diseased ear, the patient may have a disease of the conducting apparatus. We investigated whether eyeglasses and dental prostheses change the sense of vibration; no such clinical trial concerning this question has yet been reported. Air conduction tests measure the integrity of the entire hearing apparatus, i.e., from the external ear to the auditory cortex. Bone conduction tests measure the integrity of sensorineural structures. The aim of our present study was to analyze the possible effects of eyeglasses and palatal protheses on diapason tests, particularly the Weber tuning fork test. ABSTRACT Background: The aim of the study was to analyze the possible effects of eyeglasses and palatal prostheses on the results of the Weber tuning fork test. Methods: We enrolled 96 patients diagnosed with unilateral conductive-type hearing loss. All were aged between 18 and 65 years. Group 1 was composed of 48 patients with eyeglasses and group 2 included 48 patients with palatal prostheses. All patients underwent the weber tuning fork test with and without their eyeglasses and prostheses, and the results were compared. Weber tests were performed using 256 Hz and 512 Hz tuning forks. Results: No significant between-group difference was apparent (both p>0.05). Conclusions Neither eyeglasses nor palatal prostheses significantly affected the results of the Weber test. Keywords: Tuning fork, Weber test, Rinne test 1 Okmeydani Training and Research Hospital ENT Clinic, Istanbul, Turkey 2 Giresun University Medical School, ENT Clinic, Giresun, Turkey 3 Bahcelievler Government Hospital ENT Clinic Istanbul, Turkey Received: 29 November 2018 Revised: 29 December 2018 Accepted: 03 January 2019 *Correspondence: Dr. Yavuz Atar, E-mail: yavuzatar@gmail.com Copyright: © the author(s), publisher and licensee Medip Academy. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial License, which permits unrestricted non-commercial use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.18203/issn.2454-5929.ijohns20190755