The owner’s manual for ears.

Intricately shaped and amazingly sensitive, ears are the organs of hearing and balance. When something goes wrong with the ears—whether infection or cancer, eardrum perforation or hearing loss—our overall well-being is generally disturbed.

In The Ear Book, Drs. Thomas J. Balkany and Kevin D. Brown, recognized experts on ears and hearing, explain how the anatomy of the ear facilitates hearing and balance and then examine the causes, symptoms, and treatment of common problems of the outer, middle, and inner ear. Their explanations take the mystery out of hearing aids, the proper care of ears, and how the pressurized conditions of scuba diving and air travel affect the ears. And they debunk ear-related myths—from the notion that exposure to loud noise strengthens the ear to the idea that tinnitus can be cured with nutrients—and urge readers to stop using ear candling or Q-tips to get rid of wax.

Drs. Balkany and Brown address such common questions as: Can dizziness be cured? How loud is too loud? Why do my ears ring? Do cochlear implants work for nerve deafness? What promise do innovations in gene therapy and stem cell therapy hold for the future? Fully illustrated and including helpful tables, hearing preservation tips, a glossary of terms, lists of ear medications and resources, and suggestions for further reading, The Ear Book is sure to be a welcome family guide.

Thomas J. Balkany, MD, FACS, FAAP, is the Hotchkiss Professor and chairman emeritus of the Department of Otolaryngology at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine. He is the coeditor of Clinical Pediatric Otolaryngology. Kevin D. Brown, MD, PhD, is an associate professor of otolaryngology/head and neck surgery and neurosurgery at the University of North Carolina School of Medicine, where he is the chief of the Division of Otology and Neurotology.