With lupus, hearing loss often begins in one ear, affecting high-pitched sounds, before spreading to the other ear and affecting lower pitches, known as reverse-slope hearing loss. It can also cause tinnitus (ringing in the ears), dizziness or aural fullness. Auditory processing disorder (APD) also may be an issue.
How can lupus cause ear and hearing disorders? Vasculitis: Vasculitis is the leading cause of ear and hearing disorders in lupus. The vessels of your ears can fill with autoimmune complexes (antigen-antibody groups) and these cause inflammation of the ear's tiny blood vessels.
Treating hearing loss caused by lupus
The most common medicine for SNHL is corticosteroids. These reduce the inflammation that can cause vasculitis. They can also suppress the immune system so it does not attack the inner ears. Corticosteroids also raise blood pressure, which is usually bad for people who take them.
The most common lupus symptoms (which are the same for men and women) are: Extreme fatigue (feeling tired all the time) Pain or swelling in the joints. Swelling in the hands, feet, or around the eyes.
The symptoms of AIED are sudden hearing loss in one ear progressing rapidly to the second ear. The hearing loss can progress over weeks or months. Patients may feel fullness in the ear and experience vertigo. In addition, a ringing, hissing, or roaring sound in the ear may be experienced.
Diagnosis. Blood tests to help confirm or rule out an underlying autoimmune disorder (ANA, erythrocyte sedimentation rate, rheumatoid factor, human leukocyte antigens, C-reactive protein). Other blood tests may include anti-cochlear antibody test, lymphocyte transformation assay, Lyme titer.
To diagnose AIED, your doctor will ask questions about your health and medical history, do a physical exam, and give you a hearing test. They'll also test your balance, which can show how well your inner ear is "talking" to your brain. You might also have blood work done.
Kidneys About one half of people with lupus experience kidney involvement, and the kidney has become the most extensively studied organ affected by lupus.
Antinuclear antibody (ANA) autoantibodies, or antibodies produced by the immune system that attack the body's own cells, are a hallmark of lupus. ANA is usually measured as 0 to 4+ or as a titer (the number of times a blood sample can be diluted and still be positive).
Lupus symptoms can also be unclear, can come and go, and can change. On average, it takes nearly six years for people with lupus to be diagnosed, from the time they first notice their lupus symptoms.
Lupus is characterized by self-attacking antibodies known as autoantibodies that can injure the body's tissues and organs, which can result in damage to the inner ear. Periodic testing for hearing loss is especially important in the lupus population.
The effects lupus may have in and around the eyes include: changes in the skin around the eyelids, dry eyes, inflammation of the white outer layer of the eyeball, blood vessel changes in the retina, and damage to nerves controlling eye movement and affecting vision.
Lupus can cause the outbreak of disc-shaped lesions called discoid lupus erythematosus. The eyelids are often affected along with the face, ears, and scalp. Oral steroids may be prescribed to help relieve symptoms.
redness and swelling of your outer ear and ear canal. a feeling of pressure and fullness inside your ear. scaly skin in and around your ear canal, which may peel off. discharge from your ear, which can be either thin and watery or thick and pus-like.
You may experience pain and stiffness, with or without swelling. This affects most people with lupus. Common areas for muscle pain and swelling include the neck, thighs, shoulders, and upper arms. Fever.
Lupus occurs when the immune system, which normally helps protect the body from infection and disease, attacks its own tissues. This attack causes inflammation, and in some cases permanent tissue damage, which can be widespread – affecting the skin, joints, heart, lung, kidneys, circulating blood cells, and brain.
Anti-Nuclear Antibody (ANA) Test. Anti-nuclear antibodies (ANA) are autoantibodies to the nuclei of your cells. 98% of all people with systemic lupus have a positive ANA test, making it the most sensitive diagnostic test for confirming diagnosis of the disease.
The pain often moves from joint to joint. Joint pain, swelling and stiffness can be the main symptoms for some people with lupus. In most cases, lupus is unlikely to cause permanent damage or change the shape of joints. But it can sometimes cause serious joint problems.
Antibody blood tests
The test you will hear about most is called the antinuclear antibodies test (the ANA test). 97% of people with lupus will test positive for ANA. ANA connect or bind to the nucleus or command center of the cell.
Lupus can slow the digestive process, and this can cause a wide variety of GI issues. Digestive problems may be the direct result of an attack by the immune system or from medications to treat lupus. These digestive difficulties include nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, or constipation.
Signs and Symptoms of Lupus
Fatigue or extreme exhaustion no matter how much they sleep. Muscle and joint pain or swelling. Skin rashes (in particular a butterfly-shaped face rash across the cheeks and nose) Fever.
Ear lesions, leading to severe sensorineural hearing loss may be an early manifestation of SS, even if it is also a less common feature of other autoimmune disorders such as systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) and rheumatoid arthritis.
The most common otologic symptom found in clinical studies in SLE patients is sensorineural hearing loss (SNHL) that may be either slowly progressive or acute, with a reported prevalence of 6% to 70% [129–131]. Other audiovestibular symptoms associated with SLE include tinnitus and vertigo.
Cogan's syndrome is a rare autoimmune disease that primarily affects the eyes and inner ears, but can also cause inflammation of the blood vessels—a condition known as vasculitis.