Hearing preservation in the resection of vestibular schwannomas: patterns of hearing preservation and patient-assessed hearing function.

Object No extant literature documents the analysis of patient perceptions of hearing as a corollary to objective audiometric measures in patients with vestibular schwannoma (VS), or acoustic neuroma. Therefore, using objective audiometric data and patient perceptions of hearing function as outlined on a questionnaire, the authors evaluated the hearing of patients who underwent VS resection. Methods This investigation involved a retrospective review of 176 patients who had undergone VS resections in which hearing preservation was a goal. Both pre- and postoperative audiometry, expressed as a speech discrimination score (SDS) and pure tone threshold average (PTA), were performed, and the results were analyzed. Intraoperative auditory brainstem responses were also recorded. Eighty-seven of the patients (49.4%) completed a postoperative questionnaire designed to assess hearing function in a variety of social and auditory situations. Multiple linear regression analyses were completed to compare available audio...