Comparison of pure tone audiometry thresholds and transient evoked otoacoustic emissions (TEOAE) of patients with and without Covid-19 pneumonia

Abstract

Objective COVID-19 is an infectious disease caused by the new coronavirus that starts similar to an upper respiratory tract infection and causes death by causing pneumonia and vasculopathy. Many viral infections are known to cause hearing loss. In this study, pure-tone audiometry (PTA) thresholds and Transient Evoked Otoacoustic Emissions (TEOAE) results were compared across patients with COVID-19 disease and COVID-19 pneumonia, and control group patients. Methods The study included 240 patients in the age range of 18–50 years. The patients were divided into three groups of 80 patients as the control (no disease), COVID-19 (nonpneumonia), Covid-19 (pneumonia) groups. PTA and TEOAE tests were performed on the control group patients and the results were recorded. PTA and TEOAE tests were performed in the COVID-19 groups in the first and third months after the infection ended. Each test was performed twice; the results were recorded, and the mean of the two results was calculated. Results PTA results and TEOAE amplitudes in the first and third months were not significantly different between the COVID-19 non-pneumonia group and the control group ( p > 0.05), between the COVID-19 pneumonia group and the control group (p > 0.05), and between the COVID-19 non-pneumonia group and the COVID-19 pneumonia group ( p > 0.05). Conclusions Despite minimal impairment and minimal amplitude decreases in patients, who recovered from COVID-19, such changes were found to become restored in the third month. Furthermore, no significant changes were observed to indicate COVID-19- associated hearing loss.

Does coronavirus disease 2019 affect peripheral and central auditory systems? Matched group cross-sectional study and six-month follow up

“…Our results support this finding. 19 It was observed that the extended high-frequency thresholds determined in the first measurement was similar in the follow-up study, and the decrease in extended high-frequency thresholds was thought to be persistent at six months.…”

“…Our results support this finding. 19 It was observed that the extended high-frequency thresholds determined in the first measurement was similar in the follow-up study, and the decrease in extended high-frequency thresholds was thought to be persistent at six months.

The long-term effects of coronavirus disease 2019 on hearing have not been sufficiently investigated with an extensive audiological test battery In this study, only 10 kHz and 12.5 kHz extended high-frequency thresholds were affected in coronavirus disease 2019 patients compared to the control group (no results support that the peripheral auditory system is affected, except for the difference in extended high-frequency thresholds) Behavioural and electrophysiological audiological test results do not provide evidence that the central auditory system is affected in individuals with COVID-19 In the six-month follow-up study, the effect on extended high-frequency thresholds appeared permanent, but no clinically significant new, late-onset auditory system effects were observed The possible effect of coronavirus disease 2019 on extended high-frequency thresholds may have been missed because studies mostly included conventional thresholds The results of this study are valuable in that they present both behavioural and electrophysiological audiological test results in a relatively large sample

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“… 6 These studies support that there is cochlear damage due to Covid-19. However, other studies either found no significant difference in hearing thresholds or TEOAE 14 , 15 , 17 – 19 or both, or stated that the difference was not statistically significant. 16 …”

“…6 These studies support that there is cochlear damage due to Covid-19. However, other studies either found no significant difference in hearing thresholds or TEOAE 14,15,[17][18][19] or both, or stated that the difference was not statistically significant. 16 Bilateral 10 kHz and 12.5 kHz extended high-frequency threshold values of the patient group after Covid-19 were higher than the control group.…”

“…8,10,13 In contrast to these findings, several other studies detected no statistical or clinical differences in hearing thresholds compared to control measurements. [14][15][16][17][18][19] However, most of these cross-sectional studies examined only short-term auditory effects.…”