A hearing test before surgery may show who hears better after
Original title: Preoperative Audiometry May Predict Hearing Improvement After Cerebellopontine Angle Meningioma Resection.
How far along is this research?
- Lab cells
- Animals
- Review
- Tested in people
This was tested in people. That is the most reliable kind of research we share.
Doctors only looked back at a small group of past surgeries, so nothing is proven yet.
The short version
A few people heard better after surgery for a brain tumor near the ear.
What was studied. Doctors looked at 15 women who had surgery for a tumor called a CPA meningioma. The surgery was planned to try to save their hearing. Hearing tests were done before and after.
What they found. Six of 10 patients who had useful hearing before surgery kept that hearing. 3 patients (20%) could hear better after surgery. Their average word score went from 21.3% to 80.3%.
What this means, and what it doesn't
What it could mean: A poor word score before surgery may not mean hearing is lost for good. Surgery planned to protect hearing may still be worth asking about. Bring your own hearing test results to your surgeon and talk them over.
What it doesn't mean: This is not a promise that surgery will make your hearing better. It is not a cure. The study was small. Doctors looked back at 15 past patients, and all were women. Only 3 of them heard better. A study like this cannot prove what caused the change. It is a long way from being a rule for everyday care.
Source: PubMed, September 1, 2026 · Read the original
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