Abstract
Recently immunological mechanisms as a pathogenesis of some sensorineural hearing disorders elucidated. Eleven cases of bilateral sensorineural hearing disorders associated with the known autoimmune disease were investigated. The results obtained were as follows;
Of 11 cases, there were rheumatoid arthritis in 3 patients, relapsing polychondritis in 2, Beçet's disease in 1, Harada's disease in 3, aortitis syndrome in 1, mixed connective tissue disease in 1.
1) The features of pure tone audiogram were various in each case.
2) No case presented with vertigo attack or facial nerve palsy.
3) The hearing disorders were most likely due to the inner ear damages.
4) Responsiveness to steroid hormone therapy was various in each case.
5) Responsiveness to steroid hormone therapy was more effective in autoimmune disease with vasculitis than the others.
6) It was supposed that the hearing disorders are a part of systemic disease like autoimmune disease because of the similarity of hearing level in both ears.
7) There were some discrepancies between our cases and those of autoimmune sensorineural hearing loss which McCabe defined, and those of steroid-responsive bilateral sensorineural hearing loss which Kanzaki defined.
