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Abstract: By evaluating the auditory function we study the clinical behavior of sensorineural hearing loss of 59 patients (P) with autoimmune diseases to observe whether the inner ear is as susceptible to damage as the different organs that become involved during the natural course of the disease. The control group (C) consisted of 59 subjects matched for age, color, sex, and professional occupation. Auditory evaluation consisted of directed anamnesis, otolaryngologic and otoneurologic examination, threshold tone audiometry, determination of stapedial reflex, and vocal discrimination. The presence of auditory symptoms (tinnitus, hearing loss and dizziness) was significantly higher in the P group, and statiscally correlated with audiometric alteration. These features sugest that autoimmune sensorineural hearing loss does exist, although presents low incidence even among patients with well established autoimmune diseases.
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