Issue: Vojnosanit Pregl 2017; Vol. 74 (No. 2)
Treatment of sudden sensorineural hearing loss with hyperbaric oxygenation – our experience
Authors:
Zvonko Živaljević, Ljubica Živić, Nataša Mihailović, Miodrag Živković, Branko Vorkapić, Nenad Baletić
Background/Aim. Sudden sensorineural hearing loss ismanifested by the loss of hearing for more than 30 dB at
three consecutive frequencies in the timeframe of 72 h. It is
of unclear etiology and pathogenesis, which leads to the use
of different therapeutic methods. Treatment protocols are
not compliant, making it difficult to objectively quantify
their impact. The aim of this study was to show the effect
of hyperbaric oxygen therapy as the only method for the
treatment of sudden sensorineural hearing loss. Methods.
This retrospective study included 20 patients treated for
sudden sensorineural hearing loss with hyperbaric oxygenation
(HBO) in the period from 2004 to 2014. The study was
conducted in the specialized medical clinic for hyperbaric
and underwater medicine, HBO Medical Center in Belgrade.
The patients were treated according to the following protocol:
a session of 60 min at the pressure of 2 bars (2ATA)
two times a day, a total of 30 sessions. Assessment of the
therapy effects was performed by observing the change in
the hearing threshold at the frequencies of 500, 1,000, 2,000
and 4,000 Hz at the end of the treatment. Results. After
the completion of treatment according to the protocol, a
full hearing recovery (total improvement of hearing damage
or achieving final hearing threshold above 25 dB) was found
in 11 (55%) of the patients. A partial recovery (hearing improvement
of up to 15 dB, and a final hearing threshold below
45 dB) occurred in 4 (20%) of the patients. In 5 (25%)
of the patients, improvement was not verified (there was no
recovery or it was less than 5 dB). The average absolute
hearing recovery was 24.94 dB. The mean relative hearing
recovery was 65.45%. Conclusion. Because of the unclear
multifactorial etiopathogenesis of this disease, there are
many therapeutic protocols. Based on the results of our
study HBO therapy could be recommended primarily as the
treatment for sudden sensorineural hearing loss.
