The role of N-terminal pro-B type natriuretic peptide in subjects with idiopathic sudden sensorineural hearing loss: a paradigm of its vascular function.

B type natriuretic peptide (BNP) and N-terminal pro-B type natriuretic peptide (NT-pro-BNP) are well known markers of cardiac function,1 released by cardiomyocytes and cardiac fibroblasts, after the stretch and the hypoxic stimulus.1–4 The vascular damage and subsequent hyp- oxic insult is one of the most accredited etiopathogenetic theories5,6 of Idiopathic Sudden Sensorineural Hearing Loss (ISSHL), defined as a hearing loss of at least 30 dB over three contiguous test frequencies occurring within a 72-h period.7 Aim of our study was to analyze the role of NT-pro-BNP in subjects with ISSHL in order to under- stand more about the ISSHL pathological mechanisms