Rapidly progressive hearing loss as a symptom of polyarteritis nodosa.

The hearing loss that occurs in polyarteritis nodosa is due largely to middle ear effusion but usually appears as a mixed type. Pure perceptive hearing loss is rare; only two cases have been reported previously in which sensorineural hearing loss was the initial sign of the disease. A case of profound, rapidly deteriorating perceptive hearing loss in which the etiology was not clear is described. One year after the onset of hearing loss, other manifestations of polyarteritis nodosa led to the diagnosis.