Age: 66.0
Sex: M
Vaccine: COVID19
Symptoms: Feeling abnormal, Influenza like illness, Loss of personal independence in daily activities, Magnetic resonance imaging head abnormal, Middle ear effusion
Clinical narrative: On 7/6/2022, my partner and I picked up a couple of friends who had been on a cruise ship and went sightseeing. One of our friends became ill later that day, and we were in close proximity with him for about three hours. He later tested positive for COVID-19 that day. The rest of us didn't begin to have symptoms until 7/7/2022. On 7/7/2022, I had flu-like symptoms, like body aches and mild fever. I went to the ER that day to get treated for COVID-19. I was tested for COVID-19 and got a positive result. I was put on intravenous fluids and prescribed Paxlovid. I was released from the ER after an hour to an hour and a half. I then went home and went to bed. The COVID-19 peaked on 7/8/2022. I was miserable for three days, and then I was okay again. Overall, it was a mild case. I returned to my normal activities after about three days or so. On 11/3/2022, I experienced an idiopathic bilateral simultaneous sudden sensorineural hearing loss. I was out of the country at the time, and on 11/4/2022 I went to a GP, who prescribed me 30mg of deflazacort, Nasonex nasal spray, and Allegra (120mg) to take once a day for ten days. The doctor suggested that it may have been caused by a virus I had been exposed to. The GP told me that many surfers in the area get the virus and have their hearing affected and that I shouldn't worry, because my hearing would return within a couple of weeks. I had not gone surfing that day. The only time I had been in the ocean was once when I briefly dunked my head in.  I had 40-50% hearing loss in the right ear and 75-80% hearing loss in the left ear. This was sudden, and it occurred simultaneously in both ears. I don't know if this is in any way related, but I had received a Moderna COVID-19 booster (AS7162B) on 9/14/2022. I also experienced significant tinnitus at the onset of the hearing loss; it was bilateral, but more significant in the left ear. The same partial hearing loss continues to the present. There has been no improvement in either the hearing loss or the tinnitus. On 11/8/2022, I went to an ENT in the country I was visiting. I underwent a full examination of my ears and throat. The ENT said that my condition was likely caused by a virus, and he said that my eardrums were "cloudy" and that I must have a lot of fluid in them. I underwent a complete battery of blood tests to rule out parasites or other possible causes of my condition. The ENT prescribed a ten-day course of Abrilar EA syrup (Hedera helix) and Nexium (40mg). The ENT basically agreed with the GP and suggested that the condition was temporary and virally based and that my ears were clogged. When he prescribed the Nexium to take with the Abrilar EA syrup, he suggested that the Nexium would help, because the Abrilar EA would dissolve what he thought was solidified phlegm in the nasal cavity and eardrums, which was being promoted by a virus of some sort. He believed that the virus was regenerating in my gut and refluxing back to my nasal cavity and eardrums as I slept and was horizontal. I followed the doctor's advice, and there was no change. When I came back, I saw a PA at a walk-in clinic on 11/22/2022. She examined me and said my ears were perfectly clear. She referred me to a radiologist, and the MD she worked for insisted that it be a radiologist who could do a full-brain MRI with a special study of my ear canals. On 11/23/2022, I underwent an audiogram. According to the audiologist, I had sensorineural hearing loss in the left ear, and there was no muscle activity at all in the left ear that she could detect. She determined also that there was conductive hearing loss in the right ear. On 11/30/2022, I underwent a full-brain MRI with a special study of the ear canals. The radiologist said that with the exception of a blood vessel being observed unusually close to the right ear canal nerve, the results were "unremarkable." I went to an ENT on 12/9/2022. He examined me as a new patient and got the details of my case. He was surprised by the details, as he had never dealt with a case similar to mine before, and he said he would need to do further research to draw up a treatment plan. I then went back to the ENT for a follow-up on 12/13/2022. He directed me to get another audiogram by an audiologist in his building, so that he could get a second opinion aside from that of the audiologist I had previously seen. I underwent the audiogram, and the ENT decided to administer a transtympanic injection of dexamethasone in the left ear. Unfortunately, I did not notice any change afterwards. I had one additional follow-up at his recommendation on 12/27/2022. I received a second transtympanic dexamethasone injection in the left ear. I also received an additional audiogram from a third audiologist, who wanted to see if there had been any noticeable change since the first transtympanic injection. I received this just before I got the second injection. No improvement was indicated in the results. On 1/6/2023, I had a telehealth appointment with a neurotologist who is considered to be the top otolaryngologist in the country. He carefully listened to my story and told me that unfortunately, nothing further could be done to help my situation and I should get hearing aids, as my condition is permanent.