Evaluation of nasal endoscopy assessment as a Prognostic Tool in sensorineural hearing loss
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.22813300Keywords:
nasal endoscopy, sensorineural hearing loss, prognosis, chronic rhinosinusitis, audiometryAbstract
Background: Nasal endoscopy is a validated bedside instrument for grading sinonasal mucosal inflammation, and chronic rhinosinusitis and allergic rhinitis have both been linked epidemiologically to inner-ear dysfunction, but the direct prognostic value of nasal endoscopic findings for sensorineural hearing loss recovery has not been systematically evaluated.
Objective: To determine whether a standardised nasal endoscopic inflammation score at presentation predicts baseline audiometric severity and six-month hearing recovery in patients with sensorineural hearing loss.
Methods: In a prospective cohort study, consecutive adults presenting with sensorineural hearing loss underwent rigid nasal endoscopy scored using a modified Lund-Kennedy system alongside baseline pure-tone audiometry. Associations between endoscopic score, audiometric severity and six-month hearing recovery were assessed by correlation, chi-square and multivariable logistic regression adjusting for age, baseline severity, time to treatment and vertigo.
Results: Endoscopic inflammation score correlated weakly to moderately with baseline threshold severity and was an independent, though modest, predictor of failure to achieve at least partial six-month recovery, with the strongest association observed among patients with confirmed comorbid allergic rhinitis or chronic rhinosinusitis.
Conclusions: Standardised nasal endoscopy provides modest but independent adjunctive prognostic information for hearing recovery in sensorineural hearing loss, particularly in patients with comorbid sinonasal inflammatory disease, supporting its consideration as a low-cost adjunct to standard audiometric prognostic assessment.
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