Idiopathic Sudden Sensorineural Hearing Loss, But Not Compatible With the Classical Definition

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE The purpose of this study was to raise awareness for patients who did not meet the audiometric criteria of idiopathic sudden sensorineural hearing loss (SSNHL) but complained of acute hearing loss.MATERIALS AND METHODSMedical records of patients who were diagnosed with SSNHL from October 2021 to March 2023 were examined retrospectively. Among 223 patients with SSNHL, 40 cases with atypical SSNHL and fitting in the criteria were included in the study. The patients who were included in this study were the ones who were given one bolus dose of IV systemic steroid (250 mg methylprednisolone with a proton pump inhibitor) and betahistine 2x24 mg po for a month. Pure tone audiometry was performed during the initial visit, on the fifth day, and at the end of the one-month usage of betahistine tablets. Hearing levels on the 250, 500, 1,000, 2,000, 4,000, and 8,000 Hz of the affected ear were compared with those of the contralateral ear. Hearing improvement was calculated as the hearing gain (in decibels) on the control audiograms and the resolution of the patients' complaints.RESULTSThese patients were suffering from idiopathic SSNHL with minimal hearing impairment. A total of 36 of the cases had hearing recovery on the fifth-day audiogram, and the remaining four patients showed hearing improvement on the first-month audiogram. The changes between the initial and the control audiogram values were found to be statistically significant (p