Abstract
Objective: Intratympanic (IT) steroids are increasingly used in the treatment of sudden sensorineural hearing loss (SSNHL). The aim of this study is to investigate the effectiveness of IT administration of dexamethasone treatment for SSNHL.
Method: We retrospectively reviewed medical records of SSNHL patients who were treated with IT dexamethasone in our hospital from January 2004 to October 2010. Indications for IT treatment: 1) Failure of systemic therapy; 2) Contraindications for systemic therapy; 3) Patients who presented more than 2 weeks after the onset of hearing loss.
Results: A total of 117 patients were reviewed. The mean age of the patients was 51.2 years, ranging from 18 to 81 years. Patients were divided into 2 groups: I) Patients who were treated with IT dexamethasone after the failure of initial systemic treatment: n = 80 (68.3%). II) Patients who were treated only with IT dexamethasone: n = 37 (31.6%). Thirty-nine patients (48%) from group I showed improvement of more than 20 dB in SRT while 14 patients (38%) from group II showed similar improvement. Overall, 87 patients (74.35%) showed some improvement in speech reception threshold (SRT). The presence of vertigo had negative effect on the hearing outcome.
Conclusion: This study shows that IT prednisone therapy may be beneficial in the treatment of sudden SNHL. Although the results of this study and other similar ones are convincing, a prospective randomized controlled study is warranted.
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