Shibafar Samin, Jafarlou Fatemeh
Student Research Committee, Tabriz University of Medical Sciences, Tabriz, Iran.
Department of Audiology, School of Rehabilitation Sciences, Tabriz University of Medical Sciences, Tabriz, Iran.
Health Promot Perspect. 2023 Dec 16;13(4):280-289. doi: 10.34172/hpp.2023.33. eCollection 2023.
Currently, there are few studies on the relationship between COVID-19 and the auditory system. In the current study, a review of the studies conducted in the fields of etiopathology, clinical manifestations, research, and treatment of hearing loss caused byCOVID-19 was conducted, which can be used as a baseline for future studies.
We utilized the research approach suggested by Arksey and O'Malley to carry out this scoping review. Search was conducted in Farsi and English with a focus on the onset of hearing loss in patients with COVID-19 through Medline and PubMed, and Google Scholar search engine. Studies included were those involving adult patients diagnosed with COVID-19 who experienced hearing loss, ear pain, ear discharge, and otitis media. Studies were eligible for inclusion if there was a description of the otologic dysfunction, specifically onset, duration, or clinical outcomes.
Among 90 studies identified, 35 studies were included in the review process. Our findings suggest several possible mechanisms for sudden sensorineural hearing loss (SSNHL) in COVID-19 patients, and COVID-19 infection could have deleterious effects on the inner ear, specifically on the hair cells of the cochlea despite patients being asymptomatic and early identification of SSNHL in COVID-19patients can save the hearing and also patient.
Hearing loss in COVID-19 infection has not received much attention by health care professionals. Sensorineural hearing loss (SNHL), tinnitus, and/or vertigo have been shown to occur during and following COVID-19 infection. Due to lack of research studies, and the inconsistency and even contradictory of the findings, it remains questionable whether COVID-19 contributes to the high incidence of hearing loss. The proper understanding of the mechanisms behind hearing loss in COVID-19 infections needs further research. However, it seems likely that SNHL could be included among the manifestations of those-called "long COVID" syndrome.
目前，关于新型冠状病毒肺炎（COVID-19）与听觉系统之间关系的研究较少。在本研究中，对COVID-19所致听力损失的病因病理学、临床表现、研究及治疗领域的研究进行了综述，可为未来研究提供基线。
我们采用阿克西和奥马利建议的研究方法进行了这项范围综述。通过Medline、PubMed以及谷歌学术搜索引擎，以波斯语和英语进行检索，重点关注COVID-19患者听力损失的发病情况。纳入的研究包括那些涉及被诊断为COVID-19且出现听力损失、耳痛、耳漏和中耳炎的成年患者。如果有关于耳科功能障碍的描述，特别是发病、持续时间或临床结果的描述，则该研究符合纳入标准。
在确定的90项研究中，35项研究被纳入综述过程。我们的研究结果提示了COVID-19患者突发感音神经性听力损失（SSNHL）的几种可能机制，并且COVID-19感染可能对内耳产生有害影响，特别是对耳蜗的毛细胞，尽管患者无症状，且早期识别COVID-19患者的SSNHL可挽救听力及患者。
COVID-19感染所致听力损失尚未受到医护人员的太多关注。已表明在COVID-19感染期间及之后会出现感音神经性听力损失（SNHL）、耳鸣和/或眩晕。由于缺乏研究，且研究结果不一致甚至相互矛盾，COVID-19是否导致听力损失的高发病率仍存在疑问。对COVID-19感染中听力损失背后机制的正确理解需要进一步研究。然而，SNHL似乎可能被纳入所谓“长新冠”综合征的表现之中。
