She realized that except for the ringing, she could hear nothing from the ear.
“It was like someone flipped the switch,” he said.
Harrell’s hearing loss was a mystery until about a week later, when he took the Covid-19 exam. It was positive.
Although she never felt sick, an otolaryngologist – Dr. Harel, a hearing specialist – explained that the virus was a potential culprit.
Viruses such as measles, mumps, and meningitis sometimes cause sudden hearing loss, and there is growing evidence that novel coronavirus should be added to the list.
“We are increasingly hearing that people have hearing loss as part of their covid infection,” said Dr. Johns Hopkins, associate professor of ottolengology at Medicine. Said Matthew Stewart.
There are no statistics on how common it is for people with COVID-19 to experience hearing loss, but a few small studies point to a potential link.
Doctors cannot say for sure that the virus attacks the inner ear. Performing an inner ear biopsy can be dangerous, as it can cause tissue damage.
Stuart and his colleagues processed the bodies of three people who died after the Covid-19 infection to see if they could detect the virus in the inner ear.
Stuart said that while other viruses are known to cause sudden hearing loss, “I personally suspect that [the novel coronavirus] Is likely to get worse. ”
He said the reason is that the coronavirus causes blood clots in other parts of the body, and he thinks it can occur in the “extremely small blood vessels” of the inner ear.
Kachen Munro, a manological scientist who co-authored the study in Manchester, said he believed the theory made sense.
“The capillaries in the inner ear are the smallest in the human body, so it won’t take long to block them,” he said.
Munro and his team at the University of Manchester are planning a large study on Covid-19 and hearing loss.
Until then, they’re not sure why some Covid-19 patients seem to develop hearing, while others don’t.
Munro and Stuart said the treatment is a high dose of oral steroids.
They seem to have helped 23-year-old student Liam, who lost 70-80% of his hearing in his left ear after a Kovid-19 infection.
Liam signed Kovid-19 in June, and he had a fever, a headache and was tired for weeks. After he started to feel better, he suddenly lost his hearing and had a tinnitus, or ring in the air.
After a round of steroids, he said he could now hear everything except high tones. The ringing continues, and he says his doctors tell him it will probably never go away.
“It’s really horrible,” said Liam, who asked for his last name not to protect his privacy.
Steroids did not work for Harrell. She said her doctors tell her her hearing is unlikely to return to her right ear, and will soon be fitted with hearing aids. Tinnitus in that ear may not stop, either.
Heral thinks about how he signed the Kovid-19 deal. It was late June, and a friend came to visit. She said they spend most of their time outside.
That friend called a few days later to say he had come in contact with someone with the Covid-19.
Herrell, 42, said her husband and children have also tested positive for the virus. Her husband’s chest was numb for a few days, and her children, ages 9 and 10, had no symptoms.
“I wasn’t sick, but I still got results,” she said. “I hope people get the message that this is no joke.”
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