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Frank_Baker Frank_Baker
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9 years ago Edited: 9 years ago, Frank_Baker
My cousin had meningitis a few months ago, well he is cured now, but he's lost almost all his hearing and balance. The infection started in his ears and the bacteria is dormant in the part of the ear which deals with balance and breathing (see articles below), so they will have to remove the inside part of his ears completely with surgery.

What I'm worried is that my cousin has asthma attacks sometimes in his sleep, and the carbon dioxide levels rise and wake him up. His brain senses the build up of carbon dioxide because of his asthma, so it wakes him up so he can get air or take his inhaler. But I read medical journals on how the inside of the inner ear is the only way the brain knows about carbon dioxide and low oxygen levels in the blood, and is extremely important for waking someone up in these events http://content.usatoday.com/communities/sciencefair/post/2011/01/inner-ear-damge-linked-to-breathing-difficulty-in-mammals/1#.VSr7j_nF98F

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21130842

Post Merge: 9 years ago

Anyone?
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19 Replies

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wrote...
#1
Educator
9 years ago
Won't dispute the findings. However, the human body has a buffer system in place that deals with blood pH levels, which is linked to our automatic breathing. I don't think you should be worried.
Frank_Baker Author
wrote...
#2
9 years ago
The article says the ears are important for the detection of carbon dioxide levels. Mice with damaged inner ears did not respond to increased carbon dioxide levels.

This is why I am wondering if people with inner ear damage would get that urge to breathe if they were to hold their breath, since it results in carbon dioxide building up in the body.
wrote...
#3
Educator
9 years ago
That study uses mice as a model to study the relationship between CO2 and inner ear damage. The same cannot be said about humans.
Frank_Baker Author
wrote...
#4
9 years ago
Well Reubens says chemoreceptors are in the ears. He also says people with inner ear damage have breathing problems.
wrote...
#5
Educator
9 years ago Edited: 9 years ago, bio_man
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21130842

I understand your reasoning, but only one study was done of this nature and it pertains to mice. Even if I personally said it could effect one's breathing, it wouldn't hold any merit. Therefore, I officially don't know without conducting a study.
Frank_Baker Author
wrote...
#6
9 years ago
There's other accounts in medical literature of the vestibular system affecting breathing rate based on position in people, and apparently people with vestibular damage/dysfunction also have disordered breathing, and Reuben also suggested this disorders breathing could cause deaths.
wrote...
#7
Educator
9 years ago
Would love to have a read of those articles.

URLs?
Frank_Baker Author
wrote...
#8
9 years ago
http://content.usatoday.com/communities/sciencefair/post/2011/01/inner-ear-damage-linked-to-breathing-difficulty-in-mammals/1#.VSr7j_nF98F

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21130842
wrote...
#9
Educator
9 years ago
Quote from: Frank_Baker (9 years ago)
http://content.usatoday.com/communities/sciencefair/post/2011/01/inner-ear-damage-linked-to-breathing-difficulty-in-mammals/1#.VSr7j_nF98F

Nothing there Undecided

Quote from: Frank_Baker (9 years ago)
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21130842

That's the only one. I posted it too (my post).
Frank_Baker Author
wrote...
#10
9 years ago
USA Today - inner ear damage and breathing difficulty in mammals
wrote...
#11
Educator
9 years ago
Quote from: Frank_Baker (9 years ago)
USA Today - inner ear damage and breathing difficulty in mammals

You sent me that link in your initial post. They all lead to http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21130842.

Anyway, I'm going back to this post:

Quote from: bio_man (9 years ago)
I understand your reasoning, but only one study was done of this nature and it pertains to mice. Even if I personally said it could effect one's breathing, it wouldn't hold any merit. Therefore, I officially don't know without conducting a study.
Frank_Baker Author
wrote...
#12
9 years ago
I suppose the only way to prove/disprove this would be to contact a few people with vestibular/inner ear damage, and ask them to hold their breath. (It'd be a lot easier that way, without using CO2 filled rooms - the mechanism is the same).

Another thing is he says people with vestibular damage are at risk of fatal breathing disorders since the vestibular system affects rate of breathing based on position. So could a person die simply from breathing too slowly as a result of inner ear damage?
wrote...
#13
Educator
9 years ago
Quote from: Frank_Baker (9 years ago)
I suppose the only way to prove/disprove this would be to contact a few people with vestibular/inner ear damage, and ask them to hold their breath. (It'd be a lot easier that way, without using CO2 filled rooms - the mechanism is the same).

Yes, that should give you a better idea. Of course, you'd need to 'speak' to a number patients who have this problem, not just a few.

Quote from: Frank_Baker (9 years ago)
Another thing is he says people with vestibular damage are at risk of fatal breathing disorders since the vestibular system affects rate of breathing based on position. So could a person die simply from breathing too slowly as a result of inner ear damage?

I tried locating that in the article you recommended, couldn't find it.
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