Outcome of otolith organ function after treatment of sudden sensorineural hearing loss

Objective:This study aimed to assess the clinical practice value of ocular vestibular evoked myogenic potential（oVEMP） and cervical vestibular evoked myogenic potential（cVEMP） in monitoring the rehabilitation of vestibular function in patients with suddensen sorineural hearing loss（SSHL）. Method:Twenty-four patients with SSHL were retrospectively enrolled， showing no VEMP response on the affected side but exhibiting VEMP responses after therapies We analyzed the improvement and the restoration of hearing and the parameters of VEMP response. Result:After treatment, seven patients showed VEMP recovery, including three cases with both oVEMP and cVEMP recovery, three cases with oVEMP recovery, and one case with cVEMP recovery. Between VEMP recoved group and VEMP unrecoved group, before treatment, no significant difference was found in the thresholds of pure-tone audiometry（PTA）. However, after treatment, VEMP recoved group exhibited lower PTA thresholds and better PTA shift （P<0.01）. Multivariate analysis revealed that recovery of VEMP was the independent risk factor for the therapeutic effect of SSHL. Conclusion:The Combination of oVEMP and cVEMP is an objective tool for assessing vestibular otolithic end organ function during dynamic functional recovery in SSHL and the recovery of VEMP could predict the auditory improvement.