Objective  To investigate the clinical efficacy of combined therapy of acoustic resonance and injection of methylprednisolone in tympanum in treating patients with sudden deafness.

  Methods  A total of 88 sudden deafness cases treated in our hospital were included in the study, and were divided into the control group(n=44) and study group(n=44) according to the different treatments. The study group received acoustic resonance combined with injection of methylprednisolone in tympanum, while the control group only received methylprednisolone injection in tympanum. The clinical efficacy of the two groups after different treatments were compared, the changes of average hearing threshold at different time points before and after treatments were analyzed, and the adverse reactions were observed.

  Results  After one course of treatment, there was no significant difference in the rate of recovery and total efficacy between the two groups(P>0.05). After 3 and 6 courses of treatment, the total effective rates of the observation group were 72.73% and 79.55%, which were significantly higher than 68.18%, 70.45%, respectively, in the control group (P < 0.05). After 6 courses of treatment, the observation group had significantly higher cure rate than that of the control group (47.73% vs. 38.64%, P < 0.05).The average hearing threshold of the observation group was (41.96±19.13), (37.17±18.89) dB at 3- and 6-month treatment, which were significantly lower than (50.89±18.14), (48.93±17.84) dB, in the control group (P < 0.05). After one course of treatment, the average threshold values of showed no between-group significant differences (P < 0.05).

  Conclusion  Acoustic resonance can activate the nerve hair cells, reduce the local inflammatory response, promote permeation of the tympanic drug and continuously maintain the inner ear drug efficacy. Therefore, the combined therapy can further improve the hearing level of patients with sudden deafness.