title: Association between Family History and Idiopathic Sudden Sensorineural Hearing Loss.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Sudden sensorineural hearing loss (SSNHL) is defined as hearing loss of at least 30 dB occurring within three days over at least three contiguous frequencies. The etiology of SSNHL cannot always be precisely determined; in such cases, this condition is termed idiopathic SSNHL (ISSNHL). This unique study investigates the relationship between ISSNHL and positive family history for ISSNHL.
  
  
  METHODS
  In total, 125 patients diagnosed with ISSNHL were retrospectively reviewed. The presence of ISSNHL in the family medical history and degree of kinship of family members diagnosed with ISSNHL were determined. For univariate analysis, a chi-squared test and/or Fisher's exact test was used for between-group comparisons of qualitative variables; a t-test was used for quantitative variables. Significant variables in the univariate analysis were introduced into stepwise logistic regression for multivariate analysis. P<0.05 indicated statistical significance.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Fifty-nine (47.2%) patients were male and 66 (52.8%) were female. Statistical analysis revealed no significant difference between sex and development of ISSNHL (p=0.04). Forty-two (33.6%) patients had a family medical history of ISSNHL, whereas 83 (66.4%) did not. A statistically significant association between the development of ISSNHL and a family history of ISSNHL was observed (p<0.05).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Our study supports an association between ISSNHL and genetic predisposition. Proving genetic susceptibility to ISSNHL will lead to improvements in the prediction, early diagnosis, and treatment of this disease.
authors.affiliation: Department of Otorhinolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, Marmara University Pendik Training and Research Hospital, Istanbul, Turkey. adembinnet@hotmail.com.
authors.forename: Adem
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Binnetoğlu
authors.forename: Ali Cemal
authors.initials: AC
authors.lastname: Yumuşakhuylu
authors.forename: Berat
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Demir
authors.forename: Tekin
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Bağlam
authors.forename: Ufuk
authors.initials: U
authors.lastname: Derinsu
authors.forename: Murat
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Sarı
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D005190:Family; D005260:Female; D020022:Genetic Predisposition to Disease; D006319:Hearing Loss, Sensorineural / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000235:genetics*; D003639:Hearing Loss, Sudden / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000235:genetics*; D006801:Humans; D015994:Incidence; D008297:Male; D008487:Medical History Taking; D008875:Middle Aged; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012307:Risk Factors; D014421:Turkey / Q000453:epidemiology; D055815:Young Adult