{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,7,27]],"date-time":"2026-07-27T18:10:24Z","timestamp":1785175824979,"version":"3.55.0"},"reference-count":7,"publisher":"BMJ","issue":"6","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2021,6,1]],"date-time":"2021-06-01T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1622505600000},"content-version":"tdm","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/bmj.com\/coronavirus\/usage"}],"content-domain":{"domain":["bmj.com"],"crossmark-restriction":true},"short-container-title":["BMJ Case Rep"],"accepted":{"date-parts":[[2021,5,25]]},"published-print":{"date-parts":[[2021,6]]},"abstract":"<jats:p>Since December 2019, when it was first detected in Wuhan, the SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19) has spread across the globe. The pandemic has had an unprecedented impact on the global population with &gt;110 million confirmed cases and 2.5 million deaths. The most common initial symptoms of COVID-19 infection are cough, dyspnoea, fever, malaise and anosmia. Severe clinical manifestations include respiratory compromise, pneumonia, organ failure and death. There have been many other less common symptoms as a result of COVID-19 described in the literature, including significant rates of olfactory dysfunction. However, we believe there has been only one other previously documented cases of bilateral hearing loss.<\/jats:p>\n               <jats:p>Sudden sensorineural hearing loss is a relatively common presentation seen by otolaryngologists. It is defined as rapid hearing loss, \u226530 dB occurring over 3 consecutive days in three contiguous sound frequencies. The exact pathological process is yet to be fully characterised, though it is most commonly unilateral and commonly develops shortly following viral infection. Treatment typically consists of glucocorticoid steroids administered orally, via intratympanic injection or a combination of both routes though there are currently no standardised management of these patients.<\/jats:p>\n               <jats:p>Bilateral sudden sensorineural hearing loss (SSNHL) is rare, accounting for &lt;2% of all cases. We describe a case of bilateral SSNHL in a 68-year-old patient who presented with profound hearing loss shortly after symptomatic infection with COVID-19, which at the time of publication is the first such case reported in the literature.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.1136\/bcr-2021-243157","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2021,6,24]],"date-time":"2021-06-24T12:21:30Z","timestamp":1624537290000},"page":"e243157","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1136\/crossmarkpolicy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":19,"title":["Catastrophic bilateral sudden sensorineural hearing loss following COVID-19"],"prefix":"10.1136","volume":"14","author":[{"given":"Michael","family":"Edwards","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Otolaryngology, University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust, Birmingham, UK"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-3065-0269","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Jameel","family":"Muzaffar","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Otolaryngology, University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust, Birmingham, UK"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Paresh","family":"Naik","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Otolaryngology, University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust, Birmingham, UK"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Christopher","family":"Coulson","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Otolaryngology, University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust, Birmingham, UK"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"239","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2021,6,24]]},"reference":[{"key":"2025082623594105000_14.6.e243157.1","unstructured":"National Institute for Health and Care Excellence . Hearing loss in adults: assessment and management [Internet]. Available: https:\/\/www.nice.org.uk\/guidance\/ng98 [Accessed 5 Apr 2021]."},{"key":"2025082623594105000_14.6.e243157.2","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1192","DOI":"10.1002\/lio2.498","article-title":"Otologic dysfunction in patients with COVID-19: a systematic review","volume":"5","author":"Maharaj","year":"2020","journal-title":"Laryngoscope Investig Otolaryngol"},{"key":"2025082623594105000_14.6.e243157.3","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","DOI":"10.1136\/bcr-2020-238419","article-title":"Sudden irreversible hearing loss post COVID-19","volume":"13","author":"Koumpa","year":"2020","journal-title":"BMJ Case Rep"},{"key":"2025082623594105000_14.6.e243157.4","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"e10","DOI":"10.1097\/MAO.0000000000002860","article-title":"Bilateral sudden sensorineural hearing loss and Intralabyrinthine hemorrhage in a patient with COVID-19","volume":"42","author":"Chern","year":"2021","journal-title":"Otol Neurotol"},{"key":"2025082623594105000_14.6.e243157.5","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","DOI":"10.1016\/j.amjoto.2020.102483","article-title":"Audiological profile of asymptomatic Covid-19 PCR-positive cases","volume":"41","author":"Mustafa","year":"2020","journal-title":"Am J Otolaryngol"},{"key":"2025082623594105000_14.6.e243157.6","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1136\/bmjopen-2020-038552"},{"key":"2025082623594105000_14.6.e243157.7","unstructured":"Sudden Hearing Loss RCT \u2013 INTEGRATE [Internet]. Available: https:\/\/entintegrate.co.uk\/issnhl-rct [Accessed 3 Mar 2021]."}],"container-title":["BMJ Case Reports"],"original-title":[],"language":"en","link":[{"URL":"https:\/\/syndication.highwire.org\/content\/doi\/10.1136\/bcr-2021-243157","content-type":"unspecified","content-version":"vor","intended-application":"similarity-checking"}],"deposited":{"date-parts":[[2025,8,27]],"date-time":"2025-08-27T06:59:53Z","timestamp":1756277993000},"score":1,"resource":{"primary":{"URL":"https:\/\/casereports.bmj.com\/lookup\/doi\/10.1136\/bcr-2021-243157"}},"subtitle":[],"short-title":[],"issued":{"date-parts":[[2021,6]]},"references-count":7,"journal-issue":{"issue":"6","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2021,6,24]]},"published-print":{"date-parts":[[2021,6]]}},"alternative-id":["10.1136\/bcr-2021-243157"],"URL":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1136\/bcr-2021-243157","relation":{},"ISSN":["1757-790X"],"issn-type":[{"value":"1757-790X","type":"electronic"}],"subject":[],"published":{"date-parts":[[2021,6]]}}}