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Lassa Fever Induced Hearing Loss: The Neglected Disability of Hemorrhagic Fever.

Publication ,  Journal Article
Ficenec, SC; Percak, J; Arguello, S; Bays, A; Goba, A; Gbakie, M; Shaffer, JG; Emmett, SD; Schieffelin, JS; Bausch, D
Published in: International journal of infectious diseases : IJID : official publication of the International Society for Infectious Diseases
November 2020

Lassa fever (LF) a hemorrhagic fever endemic to Western has an incidence of approximately 500,000 cases per year. Here, we evaluate hearing loss and other sequelae following LF.This case-control study enrolled laboratory confirmed LF survivors, non-LF Febrile controls and Matched Community controls with no history of LF or recent hospitalization for a febrile illness. Study participants completed a symptom questionnaire. Pure-tone audiometry was completed by a subset of participants.One hundred forty-seven subjects were enrolled aged from 3-66 years (mean = 23.3). LF survivors were significantly more likely to report balance difficulties (55% vs 20%, p < 0.001), hair loss (32% vs 7%, p < 0.001), difficulty speaking (19% vs 1%, p < 0.001), social isolation (50% vs 0%, p < 0.001), and hearing loss (17% vs 1%, p = 0.002) in comparison to Matched-Community Controls. Similar trends were noted in comparison to Febrile Controls, although these findings were non-significant. Fifty subjects completed audiometry. Audiometry found that LF survivors had significantly more bilateral hearing loss in comparison to Matched-Community Controls (30% vs 4%, p = 0.029).This study characterizes the sequelae of LF and highlights the need for increased access to hearing care in West Africa.

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Published In

International journal of infectious diseases : IJID : official publication of the International Society for Infectious Diseases

DOI

EISSN

1878-3511

ISSN

1201-9712

Publication Date

November 2020

Volume

100

Start / End Page

82 / 87

Related Subject Headings

  • Young Adult
  • Middle Aged
  • Microbiology
  • Male
  • Lassa virus
  • Lassa Fever
  • Incidence
  • Humans
  • Hearing Loss
  • Female
 

Citation

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Ficenec, S. C., Percak, J., Arguello, S., Bays, A., Goba, A., Gbakie, M., … Bausch, D. (2020). Lassa Fever Induced Hearing Loss: The Neglected Disability of Hemorrhagic Fever. International Journal of Infectious Diseases : IJID : Official Publication of the International Society for Infectious Diseases, 100, 82–87. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijid.2020.08.021
Ficenec, Samuel C., Jeffrey Percak, Sara Arguello, Alison Bays, Augustine Goba, Michael Gbakie, Jeffrey G. Shaffer, Susan D. Emmett, John S. Schieffelin, and Daniel Bausch. “Lassa Fever Induced Hearing Loss: The Neglected Disability of Hemorrhagic Fever.International Journal of Infectious Diseases : IJID : Official Publication of the International Society for Infectious Diseases 100 (November 2020): 82–87. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijid.2020.08.021.
Ficenec SC, Percak J, Arguello S, Bays A, Goba A, Gbakie M, et al. Lassa Fever Induced Hearing Loss: The Neglected Disability of Hemorrhagic Fever. International journal of infectious diseases : IJID : official publication of the International Society for Infectious Diseases. 2020 Nov;100:82–7.
Ficenec, Samuel C., et al. “Lassa Fever Induced Hearing Loss: The Neglected Disability of Hemorrhagic Fever.International Journal of Infectious Diseases : IJID : Official Publication of the International Society for Infectious Diseases, vol. 100, Nov. 2020, pp. 82–87. Epmc, doi:10.1016/j.ijid.2020.08.021.
Ficenec SC, Percak J, Arguello S, Bays A, Goba A, Gbakie M, Shaffer JG, Emmett SD, Schieffelin JS, Bausch D. Lassa Fever Induced Hearing Loss: The Neglected Disability of Hemorrhagic Fever. International journal of infectious diseases : IJID : official publication of the International Society for Infectious Diseases. 2020 Nov;100:82–87.

Published In

International journal of infectious diseases : IJID : official publication of the International Society for Infectious Diseases

DOI

EISSN

1878-3511

ISSN

1201-9712

Publication Date

November 2020

Volume

100

Start / End Page

82 / 87

Related Subject Headings

  • Young Adult
  • Middle Aged
  • Microbiology
  • Male
  • Lassa virus
  • Lassa Fever
  • Incidence
  • Humans
  • Hearing Loss
  • Female