Systemic and intratympanic steroid therapy for sudden sensorineural hearing loss: A meta-analysis

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Maoli Duan, Dan Zhao, Busheng Tong and Sten Hellstrom

Karolinska Institute, Sweden

: J Otol Rhinol

Abstract

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Objective: Aim of this study is to estimate the efficacy and safety of intratympanic and systemic steroid therapy in the initial treatment for Sudden Sensorineural Hearing Loss (SSNHL) patients. Methods: A comprehensive search of the literature was performed in PubMed, Wanfang database and CNKI, from January 1990 to July 2014．A meta-analysis was conducted, after filtering by the criteria of Cochrane Collaboration. The data were extracted and analyzed by using RevMan 5.3 meta-analysis software. Results: Nine studies including 356 subjects were allocated to intratympanic steroid therapy and 343 controls met the criteria for meta-analysis. For SSNHL patients, which received intratympanic steroid therapy, the effective rate (RR=1.08, 95% CI=0.99~1.99, P=0.10) did not show statistically significantly different compared with the patients receiving systemic therapy. Furthermore, the cure rate (RR=1.29, 95% CI=1.00~1.66, P=0.05) differed significantly when compared with the patients receiving systemic therapy. Conclusion: Two different treatment protocols (oral or intravenous steroid, and intratympanic or auditory tube injection steroid) resulted in similar hearing effective rates and recovery rates. Therefore, systemic or local steroid therapy can be recommended as an initial treatment for SSNHL.

Biography

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