Application of combined audiological testing in the diagnosis of sudden deafness
ZHU Xingzhong
WU Longti
SUN Jun
JIANG Lixue
Abstract：Objective To investigate the value of combined audiological testing in diagnostic and prognostic evaluation in sudden deafness(SD).Methods A total of 298 patients(135 females and 163 males,average age=53.3±3.5 years)initially diagnosed with SD at Lianyungang Municipal Dongfang Hospital from January 2022 to March 2024 were underwent combined audiological testing including tympanometry,pure tone audiometry,otoacoustic emissions,and auditory brainstem responses.Patients suspected of retrocochlear lesions were referred for imaging evaluation.Results Tympanometry showed type A tympanograms in all 298 patients.Pure tone audiometry revealed sensorineural hearing loss.Otoacoustic emissions were abnormal in 283 cases.Auditory brainstem responses showed prolonged latencies of waves Ⅰ,Ⅲ and Ⅴ in 16 cases,with the Ⅰ-Ⅴ interpeak interval prolonged in 7 cases and the Ⅲ-Ⅴ interpeak interval prolonged in 9 cases.Magnetic resonance imaging revealed acoustic neuroma in 9 cases,large intracranial hemangioma in 2 cases,intracranial metastatic tumor in 2 cases,and cerebral focal infarction in 3 cases.The rate of complete hearing recovery was 72.9％(121/166)for low-frequency descending hearing loss SD and 57.9％for flat descending hearing loss.Hearing improvement was seen in 40.8％of the cases with high-frequency descending hearing loss.Inefficiency is 42.3％.Hearing was not significantly improved postoperative in the 9 patients with acoustic neuroma.Of the 2 patients with intracranial hemangioma,hearing improved in 1 case after surgery.Treatment was ineffective in terms of hearing in the 2 patients with intracranial metastatic tumors.Conclusions This study demonstrates that combined audiological testing is of great value in the diagnosis and treatment of SD,with a complimentary effect in identifying,locating and quantifying etiologies of hearing loss,as well as in differential diagnosis,thereby improving diagnostic accuracy and reliability,reducing misdiagnosis and missed diagnosis,and aiding in predicting disease outcomes and guiding personalized treatment.
Keywords：pure-tone audiometrytympanometryauditory brainstem responseotoacoustic emissionsudden deafness
Publication Date：2026-02-20
Online Publishing Date：2026-03-13(First online date of this platform, not the publication date of the document)
Pages：4( 114-117 )