Recent pathogenetic aspects of hearing loss in COVID: A literature review
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.61751/bmbr/2.2024.66Keywords:
audiology, conductive hearing loss, sensorineural hearing loss, coronavirus, ototoxicity, vaccinationAbstract
The World Health Organisation predicts that by 2050, up to 10% of the world's population will need rehabilitation
to address disability-related hearing loss. The purpose of this study was to identify the main mechanisms of hearing loss
associated with Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 infection. The study included modern English-language
scientific publications, mainly those with a high citation index, through the professional platforms MEDLINE/PubMed
and Index Medicus. A total of 48 sources were selected. Research papers devoted to the development of conductive or
sensorineural hearing loss, which occurred directly as a result of a viral disease, or is associated with the processes that
accompany it (treatment, concomitant pathology, vaccination, etc.), were analysed. It was found that the development of
viral-induced hearing loss in COVID has a multifactorial nature. The heterogeneity of audiological changes is primarily
conditioned by direct viral damage to auditory analyser cells that express membrane receptors of the angiotensinconverting enzyme of the second type. In addition, there is a reactivation of latent viral infection, extravasation of exudate
into the middle ear cavity, blood clotting disorders, immune-mediated cell damage, local and generalised inflammatory
reactions that affect both sound conduction and sound perception in one ear or both. Some cases of audiological disorders
may also be of iatrogenic origin, since post-vaccination complications and ototoxic effects of medications used in the
treatment of COVID-19 are not excluded, which should be considered by clinicians at all levels of healthcare to effectively
manage a specific clinical scenario
Received: 13.02.2024 | Revised: 25.04.2024 | Accepted: 28.05.2024
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