The Site of the Lesion in Acute Deafness of Multiple Sclerosis - Contribution of the Brain Stem Auditory Evoked Potential Test

Abstract

Two patients with multiple sclerosis experienced acute unilateral deafness during an exacerbation. The brain stem auditory evoked potential test (BAEP) of both patients revealed absence of all waves after wave I, on the side of the hearing loss. These findings strongly suggest that acute hearing loss in multiple sclerosis results from involvement of the eighth nerve close to the ponto-medullary junction.