Hearing and middle ear function in rheumatoid arthritis

The hearing and middle ear function in 68 patients with rheumatoid arthritis were tested. Reduced middle ear compliance, presumably due to stiffening of the tympanossicular chain, was noted in 48 patients (70.50%). Conductive hearing loss and absence of the stapedius reflex, were recorded in only one patient (1.40%). In 20 patients (29.40%) a moderate (20-30 dB) high frequency sensorineural hearing loss was found. The results of loudness balance and tone decay tests and the speech discrimination scores suggested cochlear pathology in some cases. However the multiplicity of factors that might be involved in sensorineural hearing loss, and the absence of a significant relation between such a loss and the activity of the disease or drugs used in its treatment makes the postulation of a plausible explanation a difficult, still unfinished task.