The role of hypotension in the pathogenesis of sudden hearing loss.

The generic term 'sudden hearing loss' indicates the lack of knowledge about the etiology and pathogenesis of this phenomenon. In most cases it would seem feasible to consider infections or organic circulatory defects, but there are cases, generally affecting young subjects in whom the damage is often reversible, in which a functional origin is possible. We therefore investigated the possible effect of systemic arterial pressure in a retrospective study in a group of 36 patients aged not more than 40 years, treated for sudden hearing loss, comparing the mean values of their arterial pressure with those of a control group of 25 subjects, of similar age, admitted for other disorders. The significantly lower mean values of arterial pressure in the group affected by sudden hearing loss and the easier reversibility of the damage in these patients suggests that, at least in some cases, the cochlear damage may be caused by a perfusion deficit due to the combined effect of hypotension and imperfect vasomotor regulation.

Can hypotension episodes cause cochlear damage in young subjects?

In the absence of a satisfactory interpretation, sudden sensorineural hearing loss is often attributed either to infective phenomena or to organic-type circulatory defects. This latter pathogenesis inevitably comes to mind in elderly patients or in the presence of signs of circulatory dysfunction. Nevertheless, the not-infrequent observation of sudden hearing loss in young persons lacking factors predictive of short-term vascular impairment makes us suppose the existence of etiopathogenetic mechanisms of a functional nature. A survey of our cases, matched with a control group, revealed the presence of lower mean blood pressure levels in the group of young patients with 'idiopathic' sudden hearing loss. This finding supports the hypothesis that a condition of haemodynamic imbalance linked to hypotension plays a role in the genesis of cochlear damage in young subjects. Such a mechanism would bear important therapeutic implications: should it be responsible for the damage in at least some cases, vasoactive drugs with a vasodilatative action could have adverse effects on the possibility of recovery.

[The contralateral ear in acquired cholesteatoma in children and adults]. / L'orecchio controlaterale nel colesteatoma acquisito del bambino e dell'adulto.

Contralateral ear pathologies are frequently found in patients suffering from acquired cholesteatoma. A retrospective study was performed on 85 pediatric patients and 105 adults surgically treated for acquired middle ear cholesteatoma. All the patients were checked and the otomicroscopic picture photographed and compared in an attempt to gain insight into the pathogenesis and clinical indications by comparing two samplings from different age groups. In both groups the frequency of pathological contralateral ear manifestations was higher than found in the normal population. Similar results were obtained in the two groups and indicate that the same mechanisms come into play in both ears, starting at infancy. The finding of a particularly common association between cholesteatoma and contralateral retraction pockets with sinus cholesteatoma or pars tensa in the pediatric group appears to confirm that tubal dysfunction plays a pathogenic role in the genesis of cholesteatoma. From the practical point of view, systematic preventative measurement of the contralateral ear can lead to a reduction in major surgery and can affect the choice between open or closed tympanoplasty. Moreover, it may also condition the precision and length of the follow-up.