Clinical Study of 35 Patients with the Acute Acoustic Hearing Disorder

Abstract

We conducted a clinical study of 35 patients (42 ears) with acute acoustic hearing disorder who visited the otolaryngology department of Himeji St. Mary’s Hospital over the 12-year period from January 2012 to December 2023. The patients ranged in age from 16 to 81 years, with an average of 34.7 years (median age, 27 years); there were 27 male and 8 female patients. The disease was caused by exposure to shooting sounds in 22 cases (“shooting sounds” group) and exposure to other strong and loud sounds in the remaining 13 cases (“other sounds” group). The mean age was significantly lower and the interval from onset of symptoms to consultation was shorter in the “shooting sounds” group than in the “other sounds” group. As for the types of audiogram, the c⁵-dip type was the most common (11 ears), followed in frequency by the gradually down-sloping, sharply down-sloping, and flat type. The overall hearing improvement was as follows: complete healing, 40.5%; marked recovery, 11.9%; recovery, 19.0%; and unchanged, 28.6%. The degree of hearing improvement classified by the types of audiogram was good for all of the c⁵-dip, dip (2K), and V-shaped types. Patients under 30 years of age, with a short interval from the onset to start of treatment, and with bilateral hearing loss showed good hearing improvement. There was a tendency for the degree of hearing improvement to be better in the “shooting sounds” group than in the “other sounds” group.