• Peter L Santa Maria, Yangyang Shi, Richard K Gurgel, C Eduardo Corrales, Scott G Soltys, Chloe Santa Maria, Kevin Murray, Steven D Chang, Nikolas H Blevins, Iris C Gibbs, and Robert K Jackler.
• Department of Otolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Stanford University, Palo Alto, California.
• Neurosurgery. 2019 Oct 1; 85 (4): 550559550-559.

BackgroundAn understanding of the hearing outcomes is needed for treatment counseling for patients with vestibular schwannomas (VS).ObjectiveTo determine long-term hearing results following stereotactic radiosurgery (SRS) for VS and identify any influential variables.MethodsTertiary hospital retrospective cohort.ResultsThere were 579 tumors (576 patients) treated with SRS. Eighty-two percent (473) of tumors had ≥1 yr and 59% (344 ≥3 yr follow-up. In the 244 tumor ears, with measurable hearing before SRS who were followed ≥1 yr, 14% (31) had improved hearing, 13% (29) unchanged hearing, and 74% (158) had worsened hearing. In 175 patients with ≥3 yr follow-up and who had measurable hearing pretreatment, 6% (11 ears) improved hearing, 31% (54 ears) unchanged hearing, and 63% (110 ears) had worsened hearing. Patients with tumors with larger target volumes (P = .040) and with neurofibromatosis type 2 (NF2; P = .017) were associated with poorer hearing (P = .040). Patients with word recognition scores (WRS) of 50% or poorer had tumors with a larger volume (P = .0002), larger linear size (P = .032), and NF2 (P = .045). Traditionally reported hearing outcomes using the Gardner Robertson maintenance of PTA ≤50 db or WRS ≥50% were 48% at 3 yr, which overestimates hearing outcomes compared to the above reporting standards.ConclusionHearing declines over time in VS treated with SRS in a high proportion of cases. The frequency and magnitude of long-term hearing decline following SRS argues against prophylactic radiation for small tumors in hearing ears with undetermined growth behavior.Copyright © 2018 by the Congress of Neurological Surgeons.

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