Sudden Deafness Treatment Trial

Inclusion Criteria: * Men/women 18 years and older in good health * Unilateral sensorineural hearing loss developing within 72 hours (SSNHL) * Pure Tone Average (PTA) (500, 1000, 2000, 4000 Hz) \>/= 50 dB in the affected ear, with the affected ear \>/= 30 dB worse than contralateral ear in at least one of the four frequencies * Symmetric hearing prior to onset of SSNHL * Hearing loss must be idiopathic * Hearing loss must have occurred within the past 14 days * Must be able to read or write English or Spanish Exclusion Criteria: SYSTEMIC DISEASE * \>21 days prior oral steroid treatment within preceding 30 days * History of tuberculosis (TB) or positive PPD * Insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus * History of rheumatic disease, e.g., rheumatoid arthritis, scleroderma, lupus, etc. * Serious psychiatric disease or psychiatric reaction to corticosteroids * History of heart disease or transient ischemic attacks (TIAs) * Prior treatment with chemotherapeutic or immunosuppressive drugs * Pancreatitis * Active peptic ulcer disease or history of gastrointestinal bleeding * History of HIV, Hepatitis B or C * Chronic kidney failure * Alcohol abuse * Active shingles * Severe osteoporosis or non-surgical aseptic necrosis of the hip OTOLOGIC DISEASE * Prior history of SSNHL * History of fluctuating hearing loss * History of Meniere's disease * History of chronic ear infection * History of otosclerosis * History of ear surgery (except childhood pressure equalization \[pe\] tubes) * History of congenital hearing loss * History of trauma immediately preceding onset of SSNHL * History of syphilitic hearing loss * History of genetic/hereditary hearing loss * Skull, facial, or temporal bone anomalies