Bilateral deafness two days following influenza vaccination: a case report

Abstract

Objective: We report a case of deafness occurring in a temporal context of an influenza vaccination in a 79-year-old woman. Methods: Case report and review of the literature on influenza causing deafness. Results: A 79-year-old woman with normal hearing developed acute bilateral sensorineural hearing loss two days after a seasonal influenza vaccination, other obvious reasons for acute hearing loss were excluded. Conclusion: This patient appears to be the first reported case of bilateral deafness following a trivalent seasonal influenza vaccination.

Keywords

• bilateral deafness
• sudden sensorineural hearing loss
• trivalent influenza vaccine
• gentamicin
• thimerosal