Hearing impairment after subarachnoid hemorrhage

Area of Science:

• Neuroscience
• Audiology
• Neurology

Background:

• Subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH) survivors often face under-recognized neurological disabilities.
• Hearing impairment is a significant, yet often overlooked, consequence of SAH.

Purpose of the Study:

• To objectively determine the incidence of hearing impairment post-SAH.
• To characterize the peripheral and central origins of this hearing impairment.
• To explore pathological correlates, such as iron deposition, linked to hearing difficulties.

Main Methods:

• A case-control study assessed 41 SAH patients for new-onset hearing difficulty 3 months post-SAH.
• Audiological assessments included pure tone audiometry and speech-in-noise testing.
• Quantitative susceptibility mapping (QSM) evaluated iron deposition in the auditory cortex of 21 SAH patients.

Main Results:

• 23% of SAH patients reported new hearing difficulty post-SAH.
• SAH patients exhibited poorer pure tone thresholds and all experienced auditory processing disorder symptoms.
• Iron deposition in the auditory cortex correlated with reported hearing difficulty.

Conclusions:

• Hearing impairment is a frequent clinical feature following SAH, predominantly an auditory processing disorder.
• The condition is mechanistically linked to iron deposition in the auditory cortex.
• Neurovascular teams should screen SAH patients for hearing issues and facilitate audiological referrals.