Could my hearing loss be autoimmune mediated?

Thanks in advance for having a look at my situation. On 5/10/2010 I experienced hearing loss in my right ear. The realization startled and frightened me. I saw an ENT in June of that year and my audiogram showed a hearing loss in my right ear of 50 45 and 35 db at 3000 4000 and 6000 khz and 20-25 db in the ranges above and below that. My left ear experienced a milder loss of only about 15 db except for at 4000 khz which was 40 db. I had no baseline audiogram to compare it to. My ENT wrote it off to noise induced hearing loss because of the "noise notch" at 4000 khz. I'm a math tutor; I do not work around loud noises. In 2012 ECOG showed a mildly increased inner ear pressure. I had a couple episodes of moderate vertigo this past summer; a lower salt diet and maxcide have helped. My hearing loss has continued to progress 10-20db with the left gaining on the right and the audiogram generally getting flatter. I have undifferentiated connective tissue disease with a positive ANA possibly mixed connective tissue disease or Sjogren's syndrome. Plaquenil has controlled the disease although this episode corresponded to a mild worsening of my symptoms which has continued to the present time. I had tinnitus in both ears for a year or so before the May 2010 episode but much worse following it. My current ENT insists that this has nothing to do with the autoimmune condition and that steroids would not have helped because the hearing loss was neither severe enough nor rapid enough. Is my ENT correct in asserting that this is not related to the autoimmune condition? If he's wrong what's the best course of treatment for me at this point? Is there any way to stop or reverse the hearing loss? Is it too late for steroid treatment to be of any use? Thanks again Denise

2014-11-19 11:32:21

Emma