Sudden Sensorioneural Hearing Loss and Autoimmune Systemic Diseases.

 Several authors have demonstrated the relationship between sudden sensorineural hearing loss (SNHL) and systemic autoimmune diseases (SAD). Immune-mediated SNHL can rarely present as unilateral sudden SNHL and manifests itself in the contralateral ear only after years. It presents clinical relevance for being one of the few SNHL that may be reversible given that early and appropriate treatment is applied.

Mastoiditis and facial paralysis as initial manifestations of Wegener's Granulomatosis.

Unlabelled: Wegener's Granulomatosis (WG) is characterized by necrotizing granulomas and vasculitis. If left untreated, the prognosis is poor--a 90% mortality rate within 2 years. Several authors have described the otologic manifestations of WG; these authors, however, have not mentioned the stage of the disease in which these findings present--whether as initial manifestations or subsequent to other findings.