Background: Sudden sensorineural hearing loss (SSNHL) has several aetiologies and may be a presenting symptom of vestibular schwannoma (VS).
Objectives: The aim of this study was to investigate the recovery rate after steroid treatment and the prognostic factors of SSNHL with VS.
Materials and methods: This was a retrospective observational study wherein 32 patients with VS who presented with SSNHL were analysed at a tertiary referral centre. Hearing gain and prognostic factors were the main outcome measures for steroid treatment intervention.
Results: Among the 1698 patients presenting with SSNHL, VS was found in 43 (2.5%) patients. Eleven cases (34.3%) showed good recovery, with significant improvements in the pure-tone audiometry values. Even though age was a significant factor, there were no associations between steroid response and initial hearing level, presence of vertigo, tumour size, and tumour extension.
Conclusions and significance: Our study showed that hearing recovery of SSNHL does not exclude a VS diagnosis. We suggest that steroid treatment be considered in patients with VS presenting SSNHL.
Keywords: Hearing gain; steroid therapy; sudden sensorineural hearing loss; vestibular schwannoma.