Can COVID-19 Cause Hearing Loss?

Doctors and medical professionals are still researching the long-term effects of COVID-19 on the body, and some complications relating the the heart, lung and brain have been linked. More recently though, researchers have been diving into the effects of COVID-19 and hearing loss, and there have been some hearing complications being found. COVID-19 would not be the first virus or bacterial infection that can cause hearing loss or ear issues, but researchers are still investigating hearing loss from the virus and vaccines.

Ear Damage From Having COVID-19

Researchers have found that the SARS-CoV-2 virus can enter the ear, most likely through the Eustachian tube that connects the nose and middle ear. This can then infect the cochlear and vestibular hair cells, or the hearing and balance centers of the ear. This means that hearing loss can be caused by damage to the inner ear or nerve, which is permanent hearing loss. Vestibular dysfunction can cause problems with balance, but should not lead to permanent issues.

Doctors have already noted that COVID is not just a respiratory disease, in fact is can affect almost all of the body including blood vessels. If the blood vessels leading to the inner ear are damaged, it can also lead to inner ear issues.

COVID-19 Vaccine and Hearing Loss

While research is still being done on the vaccine and post-vaccination complications, it has been reported in the JAMA Otolaryngology-Head & Neck Surgery February 2022 edition, that some hearing loss has been seen after receiving the vaccine. There are an Israeli and United States study looking at sudden hearing loss after vaccination. The Israeli study was a group of 2.5 million people, seeing 91 having sudden hearing loss after their first dose and just 79 after the second dose. The United States study had a smaller data set, and did not see a significant change in sudden hearing loss post-vaccination when compared to the general population. Based on these reports, sudden hearing loss is less likely due to receiving the vaccine, and could be caused by a number of factors in your life.

Hearing Loss and SARS-CoV-2

Sudden hearing loss is not a common symptom of having COVID. There have been few reports of sudden loss and then testing positive for the virus. It is important to remember that any sudden hearing loss is considered a medical emergency and you should seek treatment.

Hearing loss is slightly more common as a later symptom of having COVID, but is still rare. The International Journal of Audiology has reported that tinnitus is the more common complication stemming from a COVID infection:

• 7.2% of people reported vertigo

• 7.6% of people reported hearing loss

• 14.8% of people reported tinnitus.

Tinnitus and Coronavirus

Some research has linked tinnitus to the virus and vaccine, but this is still undergoing research as there can be a number of external factors that contirbute to ringing in your ears. Stress can often lead to this neuscence, and stress can be caused by contracting the virus or being worried about contracting it.

More Research on COVID-19 and Hearing Loss Is Needed

As we are beginning to learn more about the effects of COVID on the body, more research is being done, and more research is needed on how the virus can affect both hearing and balance. A large portion of the early research focused on preventing, diagnosing, and treating the virus while an infection was acute.

Research efforts will probably concentrate more on the long-term impacts of the virus and how it can damage other bodily processes, such as hearing and balance, as the pandemic begins to slow and evolve into a much less-deadly and dangerous virus.

If you are suffering from any hearing or balance issues, post-COVID infection, post-vaccination, or in your general life, it is important to schedule an appointment with an audiologist to help provide any relief or treatment. Schedule your appointment or contact Dr. Srour for more information.

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Sources:

• https://www.uhhospitals.org/Healthy-at-UH/articles/2022/03/can-covid-19-cause-hearing-loss

• https://www.healthyhearing.com/report/53127-Coronavirus-hearing-loss-tinnitus-covid

• https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/14992027.2021.1896793?journalCode=iija20&

• https://www.healthyhearing.com/report/53206-Covid-tinnitus-and-coronavirus

• https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamaotolaryngology/fullarticle/2789497

• https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamaotolaryngology/fullarticle/2789496

• https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9096262/

• https://news.mit.edu/2021/sars-cov-2-inner-ear-1029