Social impact of sudden deafness

Abstract

We conducted this study to evaluate the final hearing levels in sudden deafness.
Patients with sudden deafness treated at the Kitasato University Hospital between 1995 and 2004 were analyzed. The treatment effects were evaluated and compared with the results of the National Epidemiological Survey of the same patient group in Japan.
The final hearing status of both the involved and uninvolved ears after the treatment were also analyzed. Complete recovery of hearing was noted in 44.1%, and persistent hearing loss in the involved ear was noted in 55.9% of the 646 patients; hearing loss of the uninvolved ear was also noted in 21.7% of the patients. 2.2% of the patients showed bilateral hearing loss by more than 40dB.
After 1973, the hearing recovery rate in patients with deafness of sudden onset in Japan has gradually improved. However, even now, incomplete hearing recovery is observed in over 50% of patients with sudden deafness. In the 2001 National Epidemiological Survey, an estimated 35000 patients developed sudden deafness each year, of which 20000 are estimated to fall in the category of hearing handicapped. Sudden deafness predominantly involves subjects in their 50's; the patients can generally be expected to live for another 30 years or more years, which suggests that a significant number will suffer additional hearing loss.