Open Access
CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 · International Journal of Practical Otolaryngology 2025; 08(01): e1-e7
DOI: 10.1055/s-0045-1802337
Original Article

Recovery Rates by Severity of Hearing Loss in Cases of Acute Low-Tone Sensorineural Hearing Loss

Hirotaka So
1   Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Saiseikai Utsunomiya Hospital, Utsunomiya, Tochigi, Japan
,
Masafumi Ueno
1   Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Saiseikai Utsunomiya Hospital, Utsunomiya, Tochigi, Japan
,
Yoichiro Sato
1   Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Saiseikai Utsunomiya Hospital, Utsunomiya, Tochigi, Japan
,
Ken Kasahara
1   Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Saiseikai Utsunomiya Hospital, Utsunomiya, Tochigi, Japan
,
Yoshimitsu Fuse
1   Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Saiseikai Utsunomiya Hospital, Utsunomiya, Tochigi, Japan
,
Seiichi Shinden
1   Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Saiseikai Utsunomiya Hospital, Utsunomiya, Tochigi, Japan
2   Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Keio University Hospital, Tokyo, Japan
,
Naoki Oishi
2   Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Keio University Hospital, Tokyo, Japan
,
Hiroyuki Ozawa
2   Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Keio University Hospital, Tokyo, Japan
› Institutsangaben
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Abstract

Acute low-tone sensorineural hearing loss (ALHL), first reported in 1982, is characterized by hearing loss (HL), tinnitus, and other auditory symptoms. It is a disease entity independent from sudden HL. Although the severity of HL was defined for the first time in 2015 by the Research Group on Intractable Hearing Impairment of the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare, only a few studies have examined the treatment outcomes by the severity of HL. In this study, we determined the overall cure rate (cure/all cases) in 336 ALHL cases treated over 11 years (2011–2021) and the cure rates by the severity of the HL and steroid use. The overall cure rate was 64.0%, with 75.0% in cases with grade 1 severity, 74.3% in grade 2, 57.4% in grade 3, and 34.7% in grade 4. The cure rate in grade ¾ cases was significantly lower than that in grade ½ cases. No significant difference was noted in the cure rate by steroid use. The cure rate of sudden HL is dependent on the hearing level at the initial diagnosis, and the cure rate of ALHL can be predicted by the sum of the hearing levels of the three lowest frequencies at the initial diagnosis. Although this study did not demonstrate the efficacy of steroid use, the study design biased the sample population. ALHL is associated with higher recurrence than sudden HL; however, steroids have various side effects. Therefore, the appropriateness of steroid use in the treatment of ALHL should be determined by a thorough assessment of comorbidities, patient age, and disease severity.



Publikationsverlauf

Eingereicht: 13. August 2024

Angenommen: 03. Oktober 2024

Artikel online veröffentlicht:
03. Februar 2025

© 2025. The Author(s). This is an open access article published by Thieme under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonDerivative-NonCommercial License, permitting copying and reproduction so long as the original work is given appropriate credit. Contents may not be used for commercial purposes, or adapted, remixed, transformed or built upon. (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/)

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