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A Hearty Life

Acute Hearing Loss Due To Thickening of Heart Mitral Valve

by Hsien-Hsien Lei, PhD on June 29th, 2006

PLoS Medicine presents a rare case of a 47-year-old woman who was hospitalized due to acute hearing loss. Not until about four days after visiting the hospital did she begin to show some signs suggesting cardiovascular disease - shortness of breath, a dry cough, and edema of her face and legs. In the end, she was diagnosed with a blockage in the left middle cerebral artery leading to stroke. Via echocardiogram, her mitral valve appeared to have significant thickening.

It’s an interesting case because hearing loss is a rare symptom compared to the most well known warning signs of stroke:

  • Sudden numbness or weakness of the face, arm or leg, especially on one side of the body
  • Sudden confusion, trouble speaking or understanding
  • Sudden trouble seeing in one or both eyes
  • Sudden trouble walking, dizziness, loss of balance or coordination
  • Sudden, severe headache with no known cause

Photo: Michelangelo’s giant statue of David in the Medici Chapel

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POSTED IN: Heart Conditions

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