Patient-reported experience with intratympanic corticosteroid injections in sudden hearing loss: a single-centre prospective study

Intratympanic corticosteroid (ITC) injections are recommended as salvage therapy for patients with incomplete recovery 2-6 weeks after the onset of sudden sensorineural hearing loss (SSHL). AIMS/OBJECTIVES: To evaluate patient experiences with ITC therapy and assess treatment side effects. MATERIAL AND

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✦ The floor

Discussion

Signed responses from readers of the wire.

✦ Clinical Takeaway ✦

Patient-reported experience data from a single centre can inform counselling and consent processes for salvage intratympanic steroid therapy, but the single-centre design limits generalisability; no immediate protocol change is warranted pending broader evidence.

✦ Why It Matters ✦

Incorporating patient-reported experience measures into sudden sensorineural hearing loss management highlights that procedural tolerability and communication quality are as clinically important as audiometric outcomes.

✦ Key Points ✦

01Single-centre prospective design capturing patient-reported experience with intratympanic steroid injections.
02Focuses on salvage therapy context — patients who did not respond adequately to initial treatment.
03Patient-reported experience measures complement traditional audiometric outcome data.
04Published in Acta Otolaryngologica, a peer-reviewed otolaryngology journal.
05Findings may guide shared decision-making and pre-procedure counselling in sudden SNHL.

✦ Claims & Evidence ✦

ClaimEvidenceSupport

Intratympanic corticosteroid injections are used as salvage therapy for sudden sensorineural hearing loss.

guidelinesupported

Patient-reported experience data can improve understanding of intratympanic injection tolerability.

studypartially supported

✦ Research metadata ✦

PMID: 42969307
DOI: 10.1080/00016489.2026.2749996.
Journal: Acta Otolaryngologica
Publication type: research_article
Evidence level: 2b
Population: Patients receiving intratympanic corticosteroid injections as salvage therapy for sudden sensorineural hearing loss at a single centre
Intervention: Intratympanic corticosteroid injections as salvage therapy

Primary outcomes

Patient-reported experience with intratympanic corticosteroid injections

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