Static and Dynamic Changes in Local Brain Connectivity in Unilateral Sudden Sensorineural Hearing Loss

Area of Science:

• Neuroscience
• Audiology
• Medical Imaging

Background:

• Unilateral sudden sensorineural hearing loss (SSHL) has an abrupt onset and poorly understood causes.
• It presents significant clinical challenges due to its sudden nature and complex etiology.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate static and dynamic changes in local brain connectivity in SSHL patients.
• To explore the relationship between neural alterations and clinical symptoms of SSHL.

Main Methods:

• Regional homogeneity (ReHo) analyses were performed on 102 SSHL patients and 73 healthy controls.
• Both static and dynamic ReHo analyses were utilized to assess brain connectivity.
• Correlation analyses examined links between ReHo metrics and clinical parameters like tinnitus and hearing loss duration.

Main Results:

• SSHL patients showed disrupted local synchronization in motor and cognitive brain regions compared to controls.
• Dynamic ReHo analysis indicated increased temporal variability in frontal regions, suggesting neural plasticity.
• Significant correlations were found between static ReHo in the left precentral gyrus and tinnitus severity, and dynamic ReHo in the middle frontal gyrus and hearing loss duration.

Conclusions:

• SSHL involves a complex interplay of static neural dysregulation and dynamic adaptive mechanisms.
• Dynamic brain connectivity metrics offer a novel perspective on neural reorganization following acute sensory loss.
• Findings highlight the brain's adaptive capacity and potential therapeutic targets in SSHL.