Diagnosis of retrocochlear lesions is a relatively frequent issue of otolaryngological practice, the omission of which may have serious consequences for the patient. Properly set clinical guidelines and diagnostic protocols are thus one of the key aspects of good clinical practice. There are two methods available: the first is an audiological diagnosis with ABR as the primary tool to determine a group of patients with a possible tumour with subsequent MRI; the second is to examine the MRI in each patient with a clinical suspicion of a CPA tumour. The sensitivity of both diagnostic methods in relation to cost-effectiveness is discussed.
Keywords: CPA tumours; retrocochlear hearing loss.