[The urea test for diagnosis of Menière's disease].

The urea test for diagnosis of Ménière's disease in 142 cases has been reported. The auditory alternations by dehydration tests with urea and glycerol were compared. Clinical observations demonstrate that the urea test gave the same positive rate as the glycerol test in patients with Ménière's disease. The adverse effects of urea are rather slight. It seems that the urea test be preferable to other methods of diagnostic dehydration. Guinea pigs were used to study the acute dehydration of the inner ear. The possible mechanism of dehydration was also discussed.