Sudden Sensorineural Hearing Loss in COVID-19: A Case Report and Literature Review
Short running title: Sudden hearing loss in COVID-19
Authors: Beckers Eline MD1, Chouvel Pascale MD1, Cassetto Valérie MD2, Mustin Vincent MD1
1Department of Otorhinolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, Cliniques de l’Europe, Brussels, Belgium2Department of Radiology, Cliniques de l’Europe, Brussels, Belgium
Corresponding author:Beckers Eline Cliniques de l’Europe Rue Linthout 150, 1040 Bruxelles, Belgium 0032 26143743 e.beckers@cliniquesdeleurope.be
Funding and Conflict of Interests: The authors declare that there is no conflict of interest nor funding.
ABSTRACT This report describes the case of a 53-year-old man with SARS-CoV-2 infection and occurrence of complete unilateral sensorineural hearing loss, adding new evidence to the association between COVID-19 and hearing loss. Whether this is the result of endothelial cell dysfunction in the cochlea or central auditory pathways remains unclear.
Key words: SARS-CoV-2, COVID-19, Coronavirus, sudden sensorineural hearing loss, deafness
Key Clinical Message: We encourage SARS-CoV-2 polymerase chain reaction in the diagnostic work-up of patients currently presenting with sudden sensorineural hearing loss.
INTRODUCTIONSince the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, the clinical profile of patients with SARS-CoV-2 infection has been extensively investigated, also in the otorhinolaryngological field. The virus was found to trigger anosmia in a substantial number of infected patients(1), and furthermore, a link with sudden sensorineural hearing loss (SSNHL) has been suggested.
A first note on the link between COVID-19 and hearing loss was published online in April 2020 by Sriwijitalai et al.(2) In June 2020, Karimi-Galougahi et al. reported three cases of SSNHL in patients with positive SARS-CoV-2 polymerase chain reaction (PCR), raising the need to closely examine this new association.(3)
Our PubMed search, conducted in November 2020 with the search terms “COVID”, “Corona”, “Coronavirus”, “hearing loss” and “deafness”, retrieved only 6 reports consisting of 8 audiometrically confirmed cases of SSNHL in SARS-CoV-2 infected patients worldwide.(3–8) The cases are summarized in Table 1.