Introduction
Sudden
sensorineural hearing loss (SSNHL)
affects approximately 5 to 27 per 100,000 people annually in the United
States, similar to the case frequency in other countries, and this
incidence has been increasing gradually [1-3].
Corticosteroids alone or combined
with hyperbaric oxygen therapy have been shown to be effective and are
widely utilized by otologists.
However, the range of therapeutic strategies remains various because of
the uncertain comparative efficacy and safety of competing treatments. A
recent systematic review and network meta-analysis of existing
pharmaceuticals included a large number of studies involving patients
who received intratympanic, intravenous plus+intratympanic, and oral
steroids treatment. Although the results were unclear due to the high
risk of bias, they rated intratympanic plus systemic steroid treatment
as the best of the six included interventions[1].
However, in other studies, intratympanic steroids (ITSs) led to better
outcomes, including PTA improvement and a better recovery rate, than
intravenous steroid treatment [2].
This study evaluated the efficacy and
side effects of initial
ITSs and intravenous plus
intratympanic steroids, which were administered over a longer course
than that used incommon practice for patients diagnosed with SSNHL.
Patients
and methods