Effectiveness of hyperbaric oxygen therapy in patients with acute and chronic cochlear disorders

Over the course of 18 months 359 patients with defined acute and chronic inner ear disorders who had not responded to treatment with medication were given hyperbaric oxygen (HBO) therapy. The inner ear diseases of the patients were divided, based on the duration of their conditions, into four symptomatic groups. Of the patients who had had hearing loss for less than 3 months, noticeable improvement or complete recovery was seen in 13% (20 dB in at least three test frequencies); 25.2% showed an improvement between 10 and 20 dB. Changes up to 10 dB or less were not considered to be positive. Patients with a pretreated hearing loss for more than 3 months had markedly less benefit from HBO therapy. Two percent regained normal hearing function. In 30% an improvement of more than 10 dB was achieved. For patients who had suffered from tinnitus for less than 3 months excellent improvement was seen in 6.7% and noticeable improvement in 44.3% expressed by means of a visual analog scale. In 44.3% the tinnitus was described as unchanged. Patients who had had tinnitus for more than 3 months before HBO therapy showed a less favorable response to HBO. In none of the patients did the tinnitus disappear; 34.4% of the patients described a noticeable improvement in their complaints.