2004 Volume 47 Issue 4 Pages 251-257
The clinical features of acute low-tone sensorineural hearing loss (ALHL) were examined in 274 patients treated at our hospitals. One-handred and thirty-one patients received a Glyceol test and were included in the final evaluation. Seventyseven out of 131 patients (53%) reaived a positive Glyceol test result (a hearing improvement of 2 or more frequencies) We examined the relation between the Glyceol test results and the final hearing. outcome. Our results indicated that patients with a clear reaction on the Glyceol test tended to have a better prognosis.
Isosorbide was administered to 96 out of the 274 cases. A significant difference was not observed between outcome and the administration of Isosorbide in all the cases. However, when the subjects were limited to patients who showed a hearing improvement of 3 or more frequencies on the Glyceol test, the administration of Isosorbide and a favorable outcome were correlated.
Our results suggest that endolymphatic hydrops may be involved in the mechanism of ALHL. In cases where a strong contribution of endolymphatic hydrops is suspected, favorable prognosis and response to Isosorbide administration can be expected.
