1995 Volume 38 Issue 6 Pages 786-791
Otoneurological findings in 2 cases of acute hearing loss due to rubella were reported. A 37-year-old man complained of hearing loss 2 weeks after rubella infection. Audiogram showed 39dB sensorineural deafness 3 days after onset. The diagnosis was confirmed serologically by rising rubella complement fixation reaction antibody titer 16:1 and positive specific IgM. The other patient was a 37-year old man who complained of tinnitus and fullness of ear one week after rubella infection. Audiogram showed 14dB sensorineural deafness 7 days after onset. The rubella haemangglutination antibody titer rose from 8:1 in the first week to 128:1 one week later. The hearing loss of these cases was improved four month after onset. From these findings we concluded that rubella infection played an etiologic role in sudden deafness.
Separately from the above 2 cases, we measured the rubella IgM antibody values in the serum of 131 patients with sudden deafness. In all of the cases the IgM value was negative.
