Is Salvage Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy Effective for Sudden Sensorineural Hearing Loss in Patients with Non-response to Corticostreoid Treatment?

Purpose: The aim of this study was to evaluate the efficacy of salvage hyperbaric oxygen therapy (HBOT) for sudden sensorineural hearing loss (SSNHL); HBOT is performed after three weeks of the onset of the disease. Methods: This retrospective clinical study included patients with unilateral idiopathic SSNHL. All patients admitted to the hospital with the diagnosis of SSNHL were given standard steroid treatment within the 14 days of the onset of the SSNHL. We compared the two study groups - Group A: patients receiving steroid treatment within the first 14 days; Group B: patients receiving corticosteroid treatment within the first 14 days, but unresponsive to this treatment, and began to receive HBOT after three weeks of the onset of SSNHL for the purpose of salvage therapy. Results: A total of 50 patients were included in the study. The mean age of the patients was 50.6 ± 14.1 years. There was not a significant difference in the degree of hearing loss between the groups based on the findings from audiometric examinations performed at the time of diagnosis. It was observed that salvage HBOT was not effective when the initial and post-treatment audiometric tests were compared. Conclusion: According to our results, salvage HBOT was not efficient when performed three weeks after the onset of the SSNHL for patients who did not respond to corticosteroid treatment.