Personal Factors Involved in Onset or Progression of Ménière’s Disease and Low-Tone Sensorineural Hearing Loss

PURPOSE: To identify personal causative factors for Ménière's disease. PROCEDURES: Patterns of hearing loss progression were studied in patients with Ménière's disease and low-tone sensorineural hearing loss, and the involvement of stress and the relation of stressors to the onset or progression of the disease were analyzed. RESULTS: Low-tone loss recurred in 40% of patients even after hearing was restored, and low-tone loss progressed to high-tone loss after frequent repetitions of recovery and recurrence. High-tone loss tended to proceed to all-tone loss. Eighty percent of patients reported that stress was involved or deeply involved in the onset or progression of the disease. Common causative stressors were business-related pressure, insufficient sleep, and troubles at the workplace or at home. CONCLUSIONS: The present findings indicate that recovery and recurrence may be influenced by the strength and duration of stress that is produced when patients do not feel rewarded for engrossment in their work or for self-inhibiting behaviors.