Intratympanic Injection of Dexamethasone and Electrocochleographic Data in Cases of Definite One Sided Refractory Meniere's Disease.

Abstract

Meniere's disease (MD) is a disease of the inner ear that presents itself with repeated episodes of vertigo (96.2%), tinnitus (91.1%), and sensorineural hearing loss (87.7 %). In this article we sought to assess the effects of intratympanic (IT) injections of dexamethasone on definite cases of MD using electrocochleography (ECOG). In this hospital-based case series in 36 patients, we measured audiometric values and ECOG in all patients before, 1 month and 6 months after 4-mg/mL IT injections of dexamethasone. Four patients (11%) had improved hearing following the intervention. No difference in pure tone audiometry (PTA) was observed following IT injections (P=0.492), while speech discrimination score (SDS) was significantly improved (P=0.008). There was a significant improvement in vertigo 1 month after IT injections (P<0.001), although this effect did not last for 6 months. No significant change in ECOG was observed between before and after treatment (P=0.052). IT dexamethasone injections can improve vertigo in definite cases of MD, although it seems that the effect is only temporary.