SHOULD WE ROUTINELY SCREEN FOR LYME-DISEASE IN PATIENTS WITH ASYMMETRICAL HEARING-LOSS

Asymmetrical sensorineural hearing loss is usually investigated thorou ghly but a diagnosis is often elusive. It is important to identify ant treatable causes. Lyme disease is a tick-borne infection caused by th e spirochaete Borrelia burgdorferi, which has been shown to cause asym metrical sensorineural hearing loss, and has been successfully treated . Its incidence varies regionally; it occurs where there is a suitable environment for the tick and its animal hosts. We conducted a prospec tive study of 100 patients with asymmetrical sensorineural hearing los s. Serological testing for Lyme disease was performed. One patient had positive serology, but there was no improvement in her hearing follow ing antibiotic treatment. We cannot conclude that our patient's hearin g loss was caused by Lyme disease. We suggest that routine screening i s not cost effective in regions with a low incidence of Lyme disease.