Borreliosis as a cause of sudden deafness and vestibular neuritis in Sweden

Abstract

Twenty-one patients with unilateral sudden deafness and 16 patients with vestibular neuritis, all with typical clinical history and findings, were investigated for a possible borrelia-cause. Only one patient, a patient with vestibular neuritis, had evidence of active borreliosis in terms of high antibody-titers in CSF, increased cell count and disturbed albumin ratio. To gain more knowledge about the etiological role of Borrelia burgdorferi in patients with hearing and vestibular symptoms, it is, despite this sparse finding, motivated to perform Borrelia testing in patients from tick-frequent areas. A reliable testing includes both serum and CSF analysis.