A Case of Relapsing Polychondritis with Sequentially Bilateral Sudden Sensory Neural Hearing Loss

Abstract

Relapsing polychondritis is a relatively rare systemic disease of unknown etiology. The disease is considered as an autoimmune disorder and characterized by episodic recurrent inflamma tion of cartilage and connective tissue, most often of the ears, nose, eyes, joints, respiratory tract, cardiovascular system and audiovestibular system. Treatment plans involve suppression of the immune system with corticosteroid. However, steroid therapy is associated with a number of adverse effects, and non-steroidal anti-inflammatory agents and immunosuppressive agents are helpful in treating the disease. Authors have recently experienced a case of relapsing polychondritis in a 24-year-old man who had both auricular chondritis and bilateral sudden hearing loss with vertigo. The patient showed a significant hearing improvement with the treatment using steroid and immunosuppressive agents. We report this case with a review of the literature.