The work on clinical aspects of inner ear deafness started out in 1983/1984 as a general review conceived by the Deutsche Gesellschaft fUr Hals-Nasen-Ohren-Heilkunde, Kopf-und Hals-Chirurgie (German Society for Oto-Rhino-Laryngology and Head and Neck Surgery) under the presidency of Professor Harald Feldmann, Munster. My task was to sift through the literature available at that time, to record the current status of knowledge, and if appropriate to describe existing new tendencies and potential developments. It was a conscious decision that the subject matter should extend to the entire field...