Perilymphatic fistula in teens and young adults: emphasis on preexisting sensorineural hearing loss.

Sudden hearing loss and new-onset vestibular disorders can be caused by perilymphatic fistulas (PLFs). In children, the existence of a severe or profound sensorineural hearing loss (SNHL) has been associated with a perilymphatic fistula when a sudden hearing loss or vestibular disturbance occurs. Likewise, at the other end of the age spectrum, several large series of PLFs in adulthood have been presented. This report focuses on a neglected age group, those in their teens and young adulthood. Twenty-three patients between the ages of 17 and 26 were studied who had a preexisting SNHL and had developed an additional hearing loss, a new vestibular disturbance, or both. An age-matched cohort of 21 patients with normal hearing was examined in relation to their medical history, diagnostic tests, and surgical outcome of a perilymphatic fistula repair. The findings of this report suggest that persons who have a preexisting SNHL are more likely to develop a perilymphatic fistula eventually than are persons with normal hearing.