Bilateral Deafness Due to Relapsing Polychondritis with Semicircular Canal Calcification Treated With Cochlear Implantation: A Case Report

This report describes a 68-year-old woman who developed binaural hearing loss due to RP. She was treated with steroids and immunosuppressive drugs; however, her hearing did not improve significantly, and she relied on written communication for conversation. Subsequently, the patient underwent CI in the right ear. The patient showed improvement in speech perception; at 14 months postoperatively, she was able to speak with lipreading, and at 2 years postoperatively, she was able to speak without lipreading. Previous case reports on CI in patients with RP have shown varying degrees of postoperative hearing improvement. Our case demonstrates the effectiveness of CI in improving hearing and speech recognition in patients with RP having semicircular canal calcification. However, previous reports have shown that speech recognition declines 13 years after CI for RP. Therefore, continuous long-term follow-up is necessary.PMID:38032084 | DOI:10.1177/01455613231215173
Source: Ear, Nose and Throat Journal - Category: ENT & OMF Authors: Source Type: research