Altered Brain Activity and Functional Connectivity in Unilateral Sudden Sensorineural Hearing Loss

Overview

Journal Neural Plast

Specialty Neurology

Date 2020 Oct 8

PMID 33029130

Citations 11

Authors

Jiawei Chen

Bo Hu

Peng Qin

Wei Gao

Chengcheng Liu

Dingjing Zi

Xuerui Ding

Ying Yu

Guangbin Cui

Lianjun Lu

Affiliations

Soon will be listed here.

Abstract

Background: Sudden sensorineural hearing loss (SSNHL) is an otologic emergency and could lead to social difficulties and mental disorders in some patients. Although many studies have analyzed altered brain function in populations with hearing loss, little information is available about patients with idiopathic SSNHL. This study is aimed at investigating brain functional changes in SSNHL via functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI).

Methods: Thirty-six patients with SSNHL and thirty well-matched normal hearing individuals underwent resting-state fMRI. Amplitude of low-frequency fluctuation (ALFF), fractional ALFF (fALFF), and functional connectivity (FC) values were calculated.

Results: In the SSNHL patients, ALFF and fALFF were significantly increased in the bilateral putamen but decreased in the right calcarine cortex, right middle temporal gyrus (MTG), and right precentral gyrus. Widespread increases in FC were observed between brain regions, mainly including the bilateral auditory cortex, bilateral visual cortex, left striatum, left angular gyrus (AG), bilateral precuneus, and bilateral limbic lobes in patients with SSNHL. No decreased FC was observed.

Conclusion: SSNHL causes functional alterations in brain regions, mainly in the striatum, auditory cortex, visual cortex, MTG, AG, precuneus, and limbic lobes within the acute period of hearing loss.

Citing Articles

Disrupted Cross-Scale Network Associated With Cognitive-Emotional Disorders in Sudden Sensorineural Hearing Loss.

Li B, Xu X, Wu Y, Feng Y, Chen Y, Salvi R CNS Neurosci Ther. 2025; 31(1):e70234.

PMID: 39868748 PMC: 11770892. DOI: 10.1111/cns.70234.

Research on noise-induced hearing loss based on functional and structural MRI using machine learning methods.

Lv M, Wang L, Huang R, Wang A, Li Y, Zhang G Sci Rep. 2025; 15(1):3289.

PMID: 39865152 PMC: 11770180. DOI: 10.1038/s41598-025-87168-4.

Establishing a robust triangulation framework to explore the relationship between hearing loss and Parkinson's disease.

Zhang H, Chen K, Gao T, Yan Y, Liu Y, Liu Y NPJ Parkinsons Dis. 2025; 11(1):5.

PMID: 39753591 PMC: 11698951. DOI: 10.1038/s41531-024-00861-5.

Functional connectivity across the human subcortical auditory system using an autoregressive matrix-Gaussian copula graphical model approach with partial correlations.

Chandra N, Sitek K, Chandrasekaran B, Sarkar A Imaging Neurosci (Camb). 2024; 2.

PMID: 39421593 PMC: 11485223. DOI: 10.1162/imag_a_00258.

Assessment of Peripheral and Central Auditory Processing after Treatment for Idiopathic Sudden Sensorineural Hearing Loss.

Khakzand S, Maarefvand M, Ruzbahani M, Tajdini A Int Arch Otorhinolaryngol. 2024; 28(3):e415-e423.

PMID: 38974630 PMC: 11226256. DOI: 10.1055/s-0043-1776728.

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