Auditory function following post-dural puncture XXXX treated with epidural blood patch. A long-term follow-up.

@entity1 @entity158 @entity393 @entity10 @entity9737
BACKGROUND: Epidural analgesia is commonly used for @entity158 management during labor. Sometimes, @entity9737 ( @entity9737 ) occurs causing severely debilitating @entity10 , which may be associated with transient @entity393 . We investigated if auditory function may be impaired several years after @entity9737 treated with epidural blood patch (EBP). METHODS: Sixty @entity1 ( @entity9737 group) without documented @entity393 , who received EBP following @entity9737 during labor between the years 2005-2011 were investigated in 2013 for auditory function using the following tests: otoscopic examination, tympanometry, pure tone audiometry, and transient-evoked otoacoustic emissions. Additionally, they responded to a questionnaire, the Speech, Spatial and Qualities (SSQ) of hearing, concerning perceived @entity393 . The results were compared to a control group of 20 healthy, non-pregnant @entity1 in the same age group. RESULTS: The audiometric test battery was performed 5.2 (1.9)  years after delivery. No significant differences were found between the @entity9737 and the control groups in tympanometry or otoacoustic emissions. Pure tone audiometry revealed a significant but small (<  5  dB) difference between the @entity9737 and control groups (P  <  0.05). The ability to hear speech in noise as measured by SSQ was significantly reduced in the @entity9737 group compared to the control group (P  <  0.05). CONCLUSIONS: A minor @entity393 was detected in the @entity9737 group compared to the control group in pure tone audiometry in some @entity1 and during speech-in-noise component several years after @entity9737 treated with an epidural blood patch. This small residual @entity393 has minor clinical significance.
