[Endogenous steroids and otosclerosis].

The level of serum hydrocortisone dehydroepiandrosteron-sulphate and testosterone was measured in 11 men and 11 women suffering from otosclerosis, whose surgically removed stapes were histologically proven to be otosclerotic. In one third of the cases, the serum levels of steroid hormones were abnormal. Men had lower levels of dehydroepiandrosteron-sulphate, i.e. adrenocortical hypofunction, while women had higher levels of testosterone. Significant correlation was not shown with duration of symptoms, age, speech discrimination, pure tone audiogram, air-bone gap and/or any connection between otosclerosis and adrenocortical hypofunction. In patients with normal hormone serum levels the mean values of bone conduction did not exceed 15 dB on the speech frequencies, whereas in patients with otosclerosis, and altered levels of steroid hormone the threshold values on pure tone audiometry showed a hearing loss of 25 dB.