Table 4.
Comparision of baseline. Hearing and prognosis characteristics in SSNHL patients according to IT injection number.
| Characteristics | 4 Injections | 5 Injections | 6 Injections | 7 Injections | 8 Injections | 9 Injections | P-value |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Age, mean, y | 48.49 ± 9.57 | 44.83 ± 9.17 | 43.77 ± 11.11 | 43.74 ± 13.46 | 42.74 ± 12.50 | 42.20 ± 10.70 | 0.202 |
| Women, No. (%) | 19 (48.7) | 8 (44.4) | 25 (58.1) | 21 (55.3) | 28 (42.4) | 13 (44.8) | 0.619 |
| Left affected ear | 20 (51.3) | 10 (55.6) | 26 (60.5) | 16 (42.1) | 36 (54.5) | 16 (55.2) | 0.703 |
| Pure tone average, mean, dB | |||||||
| Affected ear | 68.81 ± 33.82 | 58.26 ± 39.82 | 72.76 ± 31.23 | 75.36 ± 31.76 | 78.64 ± 29.51 | 65.26 ± 27.92 | 0.149 |
| Shapes of audiogram, No. (%) | 0.888 | ||||||
| Low-tone hearing loss | 6 (15.4) | 2 (11.1) | 8 (18.6) | 5 (13.2) | 8 (12.1) | 4 (13.8) | |
| High-tone hearing loss | 5 (12.8) | 5 (27.8) | 6 (14.0) | 5 (13.2) | 10 (15.2) | 8 (27.6) | |
| Flat type | 13 (33.3) | 5 (27.8) | 14 (32.6) | 12 (31.6) | 20 (30.3) | 11 (37.9) | |
| Profound loss | 15 (38.5) | 6 (33.3) | 15 (34.9) | 16 (42.1) | 28 (42.4) | 6 (20.7) | |
| Other aural symptom, No. (%) | |||||||
| Vertigo | 19 (48.7) | 11 (61.1) | 18 (41.9) | 19 (50.0) | 37 (56.1) | 8 (27.6) | 0.130 |
| Aural fullness | 31 (79.5) | 8 (44.4) | 32 (74.4) | 23 (60.5) | 40 (60.6) | 19 (65.5) | 0.089 |
| Tinnitus | 33 (84.6) | 16 (88.9) | 38 (88.4) | 34 (89.5) | 54 (81.8) | 22 (75.9) | 0.624 |
| Hypertension, No. (%) | 4 (10.3) | 5 (27.8) | 4 (9.3) | 5 (13.2) | 10 (15.2) | 5 (17.2) | 0.496 |
| Diabetes, No. (%) | 5 (12.8) | 3 (16.7) | 2 (4.7) | 4 (10.5) | 6 (9.1) | 0 (0.0) | 0.290 |
| Initial treatment time, mean, day | 4.49 ± 1.82 | 4.72 ± 2.40 | 4.61 ± 2.01 | 4.82 ± 1.89 | 4.29 ± 2.13 | 5.35 ± 1.72 | 0.286 |
| Adverse event, No. (%) | |||||||
| Pain | 18 (46.2) | 10 (55.6) | 17 (39.5) | 18 (47.4) | 20 (30.3) | 13 (44.8) | 0.310 |
| Dizziness/vertigo | 13 (33.3) | 9 (50.0) | 18 (41.9) | 15 (39.5) | 23 (34.8) | 14 (48.3) | 0.687 |
| Ear infection | 0 (0.0) | 0 (0.0) | 0 (0.0) | 0 (0.0) | 0 (0.0) | 0 (0.0) | - |
| Tympanic membrane perforation | 0 (0.0) | 0 (0.0) | 1 (2.3) | 2 (5.3) | 5 (7.6) | 2 (6.9) | 0.385 |
| Recovery, No. (%) | 15 (38.5) | 7 (38.9) | 34 (79.1) | 24 (63.2) | 44 (66.7) | 19 (61.4) | 0.002 |
Quantitative data, such as age, initial treatment time and PTA was compared by a two-sample t-test or Wilcoxon signed-rank test. Categorical data, such as sex, tinnitus, aural fullness, vertigo, location of damaged ear, history of diabetes or hypertension, audiogram shapes and hearing recovery was compared by chi-squared test or Fisher's exact test.