April 19, 2021

Did You Hear About This One?


Did You Hear About This One?
"Did you hear that? I think (your ear bone) is breaking up." Jafar Ahmed, unsplash.com 

Doctors at the Sverzhevky Research Institute of Otorhinolaryngology (the scientific term for the study of the ear, nose, and throat) in Moscow were able to perform surgery and heal a man with a broken bone in a most unusual spot— inside his ear!

The 55-year-old patient came into the hospital complaining of ear pain and hearing loss in a single ear. After a thorough analysis, doctors were able to determine that the man had broken the hammer bone inside his ear,  one of the smallest bones inside the human body.

This particular bone is connected to the eardrum and is responsible for carrying vibrations that allow for sounds to be heard. Doctors performed the minuscule surgery in full, and the patient is on track to make a full recovery. Injuries like this are very rare, making up only two percent of all inner ear injuries. 

Evidently, prior to this the man was swimming and got water trapped in his ear. In an effort to remove it he did what most of us would do and stuck his finger inside his ear. This was what caused the bone damage and eventual hearing loss.

Luckily, a bear did not step on his ear (as the popular Russian idiom goes).  

Injuries like this can also occur when an individual removes their earbuds or if one sneezes while plugging their nose and closing their mouth. Just another reminder from us at Russian Life not to push cotton swabs all the way up your ear when cleaning!  

 

 

You Might Also Like

A Surgeon is Born
  • November 01, 2020

A Surgeon is Born

The extraordinary life and times of one of Russia's most important doctors.
Two Bears in One Den
  • March 01, 2008

Two Bears in One Den

In honor of the rise to power of the bear president (Medvedev), Mikhail Ivanov looks at bearisms in the Russian language.
Dumplings Fit for a Surgeon
  • November 15, 2020

Dumplings Fit for a Surgeon

Tuyana loves being a doctor. But she has a passion for pozy – steamed dumplings rooted in Buryatia that are shaped like a yurt.
Thanks, Doc
  • February 10, 2021

Thanks, Doc

Moscovites are thanking medical professionals during the Coronavirus pandemic the best way they know how to: colorful Metro trains.
Like this post? Get a weekly email digest + member-only deals

Some of Our Books

The Moscow Eccentric

The Moscow Eccentric

Advance reviewers are calling this new translation "a coup" and "a remarkable achievement." This rediscovered gem of a novel by one of Russia's finest writers explores some of the thorniest issues of the early twentieth century.
93 Untranslatable Russian Words

93 Untranslatable Russian Words

Every language has concepts, ideas, words and idioms that are nearly impossible to translate into another language. This book looks at nearly 100 such Russian words and offers paths to their understanding and translation by way of examples from literature and everyday life. Difficult to translate words and concepts are introduced with dictionary definitions, then elucidated with citations from literature, speech and prose, helping the student of Russian comprehend the word/concept in context.
Marooned in Moscow

Marooned in Moscow

This gripping autobiography plays out against the backdrop of Russia's bloody Civil War, and was one of the first Western eyewitness accounts of life in post-revolutionary Russia. Marooned in Moscow provides a fascinating account of one woman's entry into war-torn Russia in early 1920, first-person impressions of many in the top Soviet leadership, and accounts of the author's increasingly dangerous work as a journalist and spy, to say nothing of her work on behalf of prisoners, her two arrests, and her eventual ten-month-long imprisonment, including in the infamous Lubyanka prison. It is a veritable encyclopedia of life in Russia in the early 1920s.
Life Stories: Original Fiction By Russian Authors

Life Stories: Original Fiction By Russian Authors

The Life Stories collection is a nice introduction to contemporary Russian fiction: many of the 19 authors featured here have won major Russian literary prizes and/or become bestsellers. These are life-affirming stories of love, family, hope, rebirth, mystery and imagination, masterfully translated by some of the best Russian-English translators working today. The selections reassert the power of Russian literature to affect readers of all cultures in profound and lasting ways. Best of all, 100% of the profits from the sale of this book are going to benefit Russian hospice—not-for-profit care for fellow human beings who are nearing the end of their own life stories.
The Pet Hawk of the House of Abbas

The Pet Hawk of the House of Abbas

This exciting new trilogy by a Russian author – who has been compared to Orhan Pamuk and Umberto Eco – vividly recreates a lost world, yet its passions and characters are entirely relevant to the present day. Full of mystery, memorable characters, and non-stop adventure, The Pet Hawk of the House of Abbas is a must read for lovers of historical fiction and international thrillers.  
Survival Russian

Survival Russian

Survival Russian is an intensely practical guide to conversational, colloquial and culture-rich Russian. It uses humor, current events and thematically-driven essays to deepen readers’ understanding of Russian language and culture. This enlarged Second Edition of Survival Russian includes over 90 essays and illuminates over 2000 invaluable Russian phrases and words.
Faith & Humor: Notes from Muscovy

Faith & Humor: Notes from Muscovy

A book that dares to explore the humanity of priests and pilgrims, saints and sinners, Faith & Humor has been both a runaway bestseller in Russia and the focus of heated controversy – as often happens when a thoughtful writer takes on sacred cows. The stories, aphorisms, anecdotes, dialogues and adventures in this volume comprise an encyclopedia of modern Russian Orthodoxy, and thereby of Russian life.
A Taste of Chekhov

A Taste of Chekhov

This compact volume is an introduction to the works of Chekhov the master storyteller, via nine stories spanning the last twenty years of his life.
Fearful Majesty

Fearful Majesty

This acclaimed biography of one of Russia’s most important and tyrannical rulers is not only a rich, readable biography, it is also surprisingly timely, revealing how many of the issues Russia faces today have their roots in Ivan’s reign.
Maria's War: A Soldier's Autobiography

Maria's War: A Soldier's Autobiography

This astonishingly gripping autobiography by the founder of the Russian Women’s Death Battallion in World War I is an eye-opening documentary of life before, during and after the Bolshevik Revolution.
22 Russian Crosswords

22 Russian Crosswords

Test your knowledge of the Russian language, Russian history and society with these 22 challenging puzzles taken from the pages of Russian Life magazine. Most all the clues are in English, but you must fill in the answers in Russian. If you get stumped, of course all the puzzles have answers printed at the back of the book.

About Us

Russian Life is a publication of a 30-year-young, award-winning publishing house that creates a bimonthly magazine, books, maps, and other products for Russophiles the world over.

Latest Posts

Our Contacts

Russian Life
73 Main Street, Suite 402
Montpelier VT 05602

802-223-4955