Sudden Hearing Loss?
One minute you’re grooving out to motown music, and all the sudden it sounds like a speaker went out. You quickly realize it wasn’t the speaker but it was your hearing! Maybe you had dizziness with it or not, either way this can be a serious medical emergency.
Hearing loss can either be conductive (problems with outer or middle ear) or sensory neural hearing loss (problems affecting cochlea or the nerve that sends the hearing information to the brain). The cochlear nerve runs very close to the vestibular nerve and sometimes both can be affected (vestibular labyrinthitis), causing dizziness with hearing loss.
What causes sudden hearing loss?
Sudden hearing loss can be caused by many different issues including:
vascular problems - interruption of the blood vessels that supply the vestibular and cochlear nerves
Meniere’s disease
Autoimmune disorders
Tumors pushing on the cochlear nerve
Traumatic Brain Injuries damaging the inner ear system
Who Should I see if I have Sudden Hearing Loss?
If you are having any symptoms of stroke with sudden hearing loss, go to the emergency department as soon as possible.
If you have had sudden hearing loss, see an ENT who specializes in hearing as soon as possible. They will most likely order an audiogram to test your hearing.
Is Hearing Loss and Vertigo Related?
Age related hearing loss is not necessarily related to vertigo. If you have sudden hearing loss, it may be. Conditions like a viral infection affecting the vestibular and cochlear nerves or structures, as in the case of a labyrinthitis, can cause both vertigo and hearing loss. Other conditions like stroke, migraines, meniere’s, vascular problems within the inner ear, tumors, and traumatic brain injuries can cause damage to both the hearing and balance organs in the inner ear.
Is There Treatment for Sudden Hearing Loss?
Treatment for sudden hearing loss may depend on how much of your hearing you naturally recover, as well as what caused it. In the case of an inner ear infection like a labyrinthitis, antibiotics may be given as an initial treatment within the first two weeks, although they are most effective within the first couple of days. If your hearing loss has not recovered within 2 weeks, then an ENT may recommend an injection of steroids into your inner ear within 6 weeks of the loss. Hyperbaric oxygen therapy may also be recommended within 1 month of the loss.
