Objective: To investigate whether there is a correlation between the inflammatory state and the pathogenesis and clinical features of sudden hearing loss (SHL) by studying the expression of inflammation-related cytokines in the peripheral blood of patients with SHL.
Methods: In this work, we analyzed the cytokine profiles of 48 analytes in 38 patients with SHL compared to 38 healthy donors using a multiplex immunoassay. This study used appropriate statistical methods to screen for inflammatory cytokines associated with the pathogenesis of SHL, to analyze their network correlation, and to analyze the relationship between clinical features of SHL and inflammatory cytokines.
Results: Several cytokines, including CTACK, Eotaxin, HGF, INF-α2, IFN-β, IL-1β, IL-1ra, IL-2Rα, IL-4, IL-7, IL-8, IL-9, IL-10, IL-12(p40), IL-13, MIG, β-NGF, SCF, and TNF-α, exhibited significantly higher levels in the peripheral blood of the SHL group compared to the control group. An inflammatory network composed of multiple cytokines, including IL-1β, is a risk factor for the development of SHL.
Conclusion: This study identified several inflammatory cytokines with elevated expression, which may be linked with the onset of SHL. The results of this study also provide a basis for the theoretical hypothesis of inflammation in SHL.
Level of evidence: III Laryngoscope, 2024.
Keywords: cytokine network; growth factor; inflammation; interleukin; sudden hearing loss.
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