Injury guide
Updated Oct 6, 202616 sources
Hearing loss from inner ear damage can be sudden or slow and can come with ringing in the ears. Here is how it is found and what the Tepezza lawsuits claim.
These are cited sources. Their inclusion does not imply that they endorse People’s Justice or reviewed this page.
U.S. Food and Drug Administration · Publisher of the Tepezza prescribing information
Finding: The label warns that Tepezza may cause severe hearing impairment, including hearing loss that in some cases may be permanent, and tells doctors to assess hearing before, during and after treatment.
FDA: Tepezza prescribing information (revised September 2026) (opens in a new tab) · Sep 23, 2026 · Checked Oct 5, 2026
Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation · Panel that grouped the federal Tepezza cases (MDL No. 3079); court summary of what the lawsuits claim, not a finding
“All actions can be expected to share factual questions arising from the alleged propensity of the biologic drug Tepezza, which treats thyroid eye disease, to cause severe or permanent hearing loss and tinnitus.”
JPML transfer order, Tepezza MDL No. 3079 (June 2, 2023) (opens in a new tab) · Jun 2, 2023 · Checked Oct 5, 2026
U.S. Food and Drug Administration · 2026
Read the source: Tepezza prescribing information, clinical trials (Studies 1 and 2) (opens in a new tab) · Checked Oct 5, 2026
Not covered by this case
It is hearing loss that starts in the inner ear. Tiny hair cells there pick up sound, and they can be hurt or die. This kind of hearing loss often cannot be reversed.
Sudden hearing loss is a fast drop in hearing, all at once or over a few days. It often hits one ear. Some people notice a loud pop just before, or a full feeling in the ear, dizziness or ringing.
Tinnitus means hearing a sound, such as ringing, buzzing or roaring, that no one else can hear. Doctors call it chronic once it lasts three months. There is no cure, but there are ways to ease it.
Hearing also fades with age for many adults. The change is slow, so people may not notice it at first.
Signs include trouble following talk when two or more people speak, and trouble telling high sounds like s and th apart. Ringing in the ears is another sign. If your hearing drops all at once or over a few days, see a doctor right away.
NIDCD calls sudden hearing loss a medical emergency. Treatment that starts more than two to four weeks later is less likely to help.
FDA’s Tepezza label tells patients to call their health care provider about any change in hearing. Ask your doctor before you stop or change a treatment. Write down your questions and bring them to the visit.
An audiologist checks your hearing with earphones. Tones play in one ear at a time, and you signal each one you hear. The softest tone you hear at each pitch goes on a chart called an audiogram.
For sudden hearing loss, NIDCD says this tone test should happen within a few days. One sign is a drop of at least 30 decibels across three pitches next to each other, within 72 hours.
An ear, nose and throat doctor looks for the cause. First the doctor rules out a blockage such as earwax or fluid. Blood tests, balance tests or an MRI may follow, and a tumor on the hearing nerve is ruled out when only one ear is affected.
The audiogram is the key record. It shows how well each ear heard each tone. A test from before treatment and one from after can show a change. The ear doctor’s notes say what type of loss you have.
Keep the records of each Tepezza infusion, with dates.
HHS says you can get copies of your health records and test results. Your provider normally has up to 30 days, and an unpaid bill is not a reason to say no.
FDA’s label for Tepezza warns that it may cause severe hearing problems, including hearing loss. In some cases the loss may be permanent. A label warning does not prove that the drug caused any one person’s hearing loss.
In the two studies before approval, 8 of 84 people who got Tepezza (10%) had hearing problems. None of the 86 people who got a dummy drug, called a placebo, did. FDA counts tinnitus and some other ear problems under hearing impairment.
The current label also reports two later studies done after approval. In them, 19% of people treated with Tepezza had hearing problems during the part of the study when no one knew who got which drug.
The first label, in 2020, listed hearing problems as a side effect. FDA added a separate hearing warning in July 2023. It tells doctors to check hearing before, during and after treatment.
The lawsuits claim Tepezza caused lasting hearing loss and tinnitus. The panel that grouped the federal cases said whether the drug can cause these injuries is a shared question. In the federal court records we read, we found no ruling that Tepezza causes hearing loss.
The federal cases were brought by people who got Tepezza for thyroid eye disease. They say the drug caused severe or lasting hearing loss or tinnitus. Whether any one person has a claim depends on their own records and facts.
In 2023 the judge used one woman’s case to decide one legal question. The judge ruled that federal law blocks her claims about the drug’s design after FDA approval, but not her claims about its design before approval. That ruling did not decide whether Tepezza causes hearing loss.
For the latest steps in those cases, see the Tepezza case page.
Yes, with the right legal role. Hearing loss can make it hard to follow a doctor’s advice, so a relative may want to help. An adult can sign a health care power of attorney that lets someone make health care decisions and get related records for them.
For a child, a parent can usually get the child’s health records, with a few exceptions. When a person has died, the one in charge of the estate, called the executor or administrator, may get the records tied to that job. Each state’s law decides who holds these powers.
If someone died, the wrongful death case page explains in general how those claims work.
Checked against 16 primary sources by People's Justice editors · Updated
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