Temporal Bone Magnetic Resonance Imaging in Sudden Sensorineural Hearing Loss: Low Frequency Versus Other Types

Gadolinium-enhanced magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is the gold standard for diagnosing vestibular schwannoma (VS). This study aimed to compare the incidence of VS among patients with low-frequency, high-frequency, and flat-type sudden sensorineural hearing loss (SSNHL) and to assess the effectiveness of MRI for each SSNHL type.

We analyzed 755 patients diagnosed with SSNHL at a single tertiary center between January 2014 and March 2020. All underwent temporal bone MRI. Logistic regression was used to determine the associations of SSNHL types with VS. Additionally, we conducted a correlation analysis to examine the relationship between word recognition scores (WRS) and the size of tumors measured on MRI at the time of diagnosis.

Magnetic resonance imaging identified VS in 23 of 755 cases (3.0%). Of the patients, 123 (16.3%) had low-frequency SSNHL; none of these patients had VS. The incidence of VS differed significantly between the low-frequency SSNHL group and other SSNHL types (P < .001). A significant negative correlation was found between initial tumor size and WRS (r2 = 0.2905, P=.008).

The prevalence of VS was rare in patients with low-frequency SSNHL. The pattern of hearing loss may provide insights into the likelihood of tumor presence, thereby aiding in more effective audiometric screening and decision-making regarding MRI for detecting VS.