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Can hypotension episodes cause cochlear damage in young subjects?

1997; Elsevier BV; Volume: 48; Issue: 3 Linguagem: Inglês

10.1016/s0306-9877(97)90304-2

1532-2777

Antonio Pirodda, Domenico Saggese, Giuseppe Giausa, G. Ferri, Simona Nascetti, A. Gaddi,

Glaucoma and retinal disorders

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.