[Note:  The MDIC (MenieresInfo.com) is privately funded and does not solicit or accept donations.]

Three famous patients have endorsed donations to the American Academy of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery Foundation, Inc., via SixDegrees.org "charity badges" at their websites.  Note that if one wishes to restrict donations to research for the purposes of Meniere's Disease (as opposed to Meniere's Disease together with other ear, nose, and throat disorders), one should so indicate in the field that says "Designation (Optional).  To designate your donation for a specific fund or purpose, please enter a description of how you'd like your donation to be used."

Famous Patient	Information	Website	Page With Charity Badge	Direct Link to Charity Badge
David Alstead	Pianist and Composer	Click here.	Note 1	Click here.
Daniel Pancy	Photographer	Click here.	Click here.	Click here.
Randy Thurman	Artist and Musician	Click here.	Click here.	Click here.
Note 1:  Click here, then click on the "sixdegrees.org" link at the top of the page.

According to its website, the American Academy of Otolarygology-Head and Neck Surgery (AAO-HNS) is an association of medical professionals and is recognized as a professional association under I.R.C. § 501(c)(6), working for the best ear, nose, and throat care.  The American Academy of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery Foundation (AAO-HNS/F) is recognized as a non-profit, educational organization under I.R.C. § 501(c)(3). 

The Foundation is the recipient of donations via the patients' "badges."  Financial information about the Foundation can be found on the website of Guidestar.org by clicking here.  The information is apparently based on information that is publicly available from annual IRS Forms 990 (or 990 EZ) filed by the Foundation.

Note that donations to organizations recognized under I.R.C. § 501(c)(3) are deductible on U.S. federal income tax returns as charitable contributions, subject to the usual conditions. 

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On May 1, 2007, we asked some questions of Kris Schulz, M.Ph., who is the Senior Director for Research of the AAO-HNS, about research specifically directed toward Meniere's Disease.  She very promptly provided the following comprehensive information.

Where we are now with Ménière’s research

Grant and research initiative funding

The AAO-HNS/F has ~13,000 otolaryngologists worldwide in its membership. Examples of funded research specific to Ménière's include:

1. A career development grant entitled "Pilot Study of the Effectiveness of Famvir in Ménière's Disease" to Jennifer Derebery at the House Ear Institute, Los Angeles

 2. A resident research grant entitled "Effects of intratympanic gentamycin on canal cristae" to Iee Ching Wu Anderson at Johns Hopkins (Single dose intratympanic gentamycin is used to alleviate vertigo in patients with Ménière's - this study is a basic science animal model to determine anatomically how well animal data correlates to human)

Through our Combined Otolaryngology Research Efforts (CORE) grants program, we – along with a group of sister societies – have been funding otolaryngology research for over 20 years.  We funded close to ~$500K in research in 2006 and expect to increase those numbers significantly this year. We received 127 applications and final decisions are being made now by the societies. We had many applications that referenced Ménière's Disease, and one pending application that specifically focused on Ménière's Disease, a resident research grant in basic science testing vasopressin on vestibular function in an animal model of Ménière's Disease with the hypothesis that treatments that block vasopressin receptors will protect against hearing loss and vertigo, and may prove a useful treatment for the vestibular symptoms of Meniere's disease.

Contributing to peer reviewed literature

The AAO-HNS/F has a monthly scientific peer reviewed journal (Otolaryngology - Head and Neck Surgery). In a search of the last 10 years of the journal online, there were 395 hits for Ménière's.  Ménière's is a very well published topic. Some recent titles are listed below:

Endolymphatic mastoid shunt versus endolymphatic sac decompression for Ménière’s disease
Brinson GM, Chen DA, Arriaga MA
Otolaryngology - Head and Neck Surgery- 2007 03 (Vol. 136, Issue 3)

Spontaneous intracranial hypotension mimicking Ménière’s disease
Miller RS, Tami TA, Pensak M
Otolaryngology - Head and Neck Surgery- 2006 10 (Vol. 135, Issue 4)

From our September 2006 Annual Meeting Program (published in the Journal):

R043: Redox Regulation and Auto Antibodies in Ménière's Disease
Hayashi K, Kobayashi R, Matsumoto T, Ogawa K
Otolaryngology - Head and Neck Surgery- 2006 08 (Vol. 135, Issue 2 (Supplement))

P113: High Resolution MRI in Patients with Ménière's Disease
Silver RD, Bachuwar A, Rimell FL, Levine SC
Otolaryngology - Head and Neck Surgery- 2006 08 (Vol. 135, Issue 2 (Supplement))

P136: The True Story of Ménière's Disease
Paco JCLS, Garcia CS, Carmo DO
Otolaryngology - Head and Neck Surgery- 2006 08 (Vol. 135, Issue 2 (Supplement))

Where we are hoping to go with Ménière’s research

Otolaryngology is a broad discipline and the AAO-HNS is an organization that represents all otolaryngologists. In terms of focusing research, however, we are open to focusing research efforts and dollars to specific conditions when it’s warranted. We contract with the Duke Clinical Research Institute to perform clinical trials on very specific topics. In a nutshell, we are happy to promote research in a specific target population as long as the guidelines are consistent with our organization’s mission and vision.

What will we do with the funding we get through six degrees badges

At present, our top goal is for badges to raise awareness of any otolaryngology condition for which we can find passionate patient advocates. Ménière’s is one of those conditions – in fact, Ménière’s had the biggest patient presence in online communities. This attempt to raise awareness and funding is in its infancy. But, in terms of what we will do with funding and how it will be earmarked, while all funding through badges will go to the AAO-HNS Foundation, we will be keeping track of what funding comes through which badges and internally keep track of the clinical topics and the dollar amount raised and in good faith develop mechanisms that give back to the clinical topic that promoted the interest and funding.  We are a small foundation, but one that is dedicated to improving and enhancing research in this important field, with a patient population that lives with such debilitating conditions.