Abstract Background The Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), caused by the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus, was considered a global pandemic and a major public health problem worldwide. It is well established that the disease may be asymptomatic or may range from mild to very severe symptoms. While COVID-19 infections primarily affect the respiratory system, numerous biological systems are impacted by COVID-19. Studies showed that patients who test positive for COVID-19 may have auditory affection. In order to improve these patients' quality of life following COVID-19, it is imperative to assess their hearing using objective methods for early diagnosis. In the current study, extended high frequencies (EHFs) audiometry, transient evoked otoacoustic emission (TEOAE), and distortion product otoacoustic emission (DPOAE) were used to assess auditory status after COVID-19 infection. Methods The study was done on 75 subjects; 50 patients confirmed positive for COVID– 19 with PCR and 25 controls. Their ages ranged from 18 to 50 years with no previous hearing complaints. All participants were tested by conventional pure-tone audiometry (PTA), EHF audiometry, TEOAE, and DPOAE. Results Pure tone audiometry thresholds were found to be significantly higher in the patients group compared to controls across all frequencies. The mean values of TEOAE absolute amplitude at 3000 Hz and 4000 Hz were significantly lower in patients group. Additionally, DP absolute amplitude at frequencies above 1105 Hz was significantly lower in patients group. Conclusion The effect of COVID-19 on the auditory system, specifically on the OHCs in cochlear basal turn were confirmed by the significantly higher PTA thresholds, lower absolute amplitude of TEOAE and DPOAE in patients group especially at high frequencies. The severity of the disease and the presence of otological symptoms are considerable factors in hearing affection, hence requiring more attention and prompt hearing evaluation.
Elmoazen et al. (Sat,) studied this question.