The treatment for idiopathic sudden sensorineural hearing loss at Kitasato University Hospital in past 16 years.

Abstract

A total of 578 patients with idiopathic sudden sensorineural hearing loss (ISSHL) treated between 1994 and 2009 at our hospital were investigated in regard to the treatment regimens, final hearing levels, and the effect on the outcomes between different treatment regimens. Among the treatment methods, the admission rates were 68, 89, and 95% in grades 2, 3 and 4, respectively. The rates of patients treated with hyperbaric oxygen (HBO) were 24, 35, and 63% in grades 2, 3, and 4, respectively.
In the final hearing levels, the peaks of distribution around 10∼20dB were shown in grade 2 and 3, whereas a normal distribution pattern with the peak at 60dB was evidenced in grade 4. There was a clear difference in the final hearing distribution between grade 2-3 and 4. A logistic regression analysis indicated the following results: 1) In grade 2, there was no significant effect on the final outcomes whether the treatment methods were applied in the outpatient or inpatient setting; 2) In the patients treated with grade 3 and 4 in the inpatient setting, there was no significant difference in the effect on the final hearing outcomes whether HBO was added or not.