Evaluation of hearing functions by audiological tests in patients diagnosed with isolated atrial septal defect (ASD) / patent foramen ovale (PFO)

Individuals diagnosed with atrial septal defect, patent foramen ovale may have pathological conditions in which various systems are affected. It is suggested that the main reason for this is the ischemic focal point in the brain. It is seen that ischemic foci also affect the hearing and balance system. The aim of our study is to prove the auditory interaction in the audiological examinations we performed on a larger sample. In the study; A total of 75 subjects, 25 patients from the ASD group, 25 patients from the PFO group, and 25 patients from the control group, were evaluated. Subjects in the study group were compared vocally in two separate groups, with and without ischemic focus. Pure tone audiometry, speech audiometry, immitansmetric evaluation and ABR were applied to all individuals. Those with normal tympanometry and acoustic reflex tests were included in the study. In the results of the study; Pure tone audiogram thresholds of ASD patients and speech test thresholds of PFO patients were significantly lower than the control group (p<0.05). ABR thresholds of ASD, PFO patients were also significantly lower than the control group (p<0.05). Bilateral III-V and I-V interpeak latencies were also significantly prolonged (p<0.05). There was no statistically significant relationship between ASD-PFO groups in all findings (p>0.05). There was a significant difference between all audiometric and ABR thresholds between patients with and without ischemic focus (p<0.05). Evaluations ASD supported the presence of hearing loss in patients with PFO. The data of our study are important in terms of adding the auditory region to possible embolism sites, drawing attention to multidisciplinary studies and contributing to the fact that this situation is not subclinical. Keywords: Atrial septal defect, audiometry, auditory brainstem response, patent foramen ovale.