Did you know that there
are some medications
and chemicals that can
actually cause hearing loss?
Well, in this video
I'm covering everything
that you need to know about
these ototoxic agents,
coming up.
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Hi, guys, Cliff Olson, Doctor of Audiology
and founder of Applied Hearing Solutions
in Phoenix, Arizona, and I cover a bunch
of hearing related information
to help make you a
better informed consumer.
So if you're into that,
make sure you hit that subscribe button,
and don't forget to click the bell
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every time I post a new video.
Ototoxic is just a fancy word
to describe any substance
that could cause damage to your ears,
and there are a lot of ototoxic substances
that can cause damage
to your hearing organ,
which is your cochlea,
your vestibular system
which controls your balance,
and the auditory nerve
and vestibular nerve that
actually take those signals
from your ears to your brain.
These substances that are harmful
to your auditory system
can come in the form
of medications that you take orally
or injected, and they can also come
from different environmental exposures
like to heavy metals and vapors,
or even cleaning solutions.
These chemical agents typically result
in bilateral high frequency
sensorineural hearing loss,
which is often permanent, and
it can also cause tinnitus,
which is ringing and
buzzing inside of your ears,
which is often the first sign
that you're actually
getting a hearing loss.
When the balance system is affected,
you can often experience vertigo,
which is the sensation that you're moving
when you're actually standing still.
While there are a ton of medications
that have a reported side
effect of hearing loss,
tinnitus, and balance issues,
there are particular families
of drugs that can be particularly ototoxic
and vestibulotoxic.
These families include aminoglycosides,
loop diuretics, non-steroidal
anti-inflammatory drugs,
otherwise known as NSAIDs,
chemotherapeutic agents,
and antimalarial agents, which
are used to prevent malaria.
Aminoglycosides are
antibacterial medications
which are typically taken in
life threatening situations
and are particularly toxic
when taken intravenously
as opposed to taken orally.
Some common aminoglycosides
are Streptomycin,
Gentamycin, Neomycin, Amikacin,
Kanamycin, and Tobramycin.
The ototoxic effect of aminoglycosides
is typically bilateral high frequency
sensorineural hearing loss,
and it is often permanent.
Loop diuretics are often used
to remove excessive fluid
from the body, so if you're someone
who experiences heart
failure, hypertension,
if you have edema or
swelling, loop diuretics
will help pull that water from your body.
These loop diuretics are
known to cause damage
to the auditory system, which includes,
and bear with me on
pronunciation on these,
furosemide, bumetanide,
ethacrynic acid, and torsemide.
Much like aminoglycosides,
when you take a loop diuretic orally,
it is not as bad for you as it is
if you take it intravenously.
If you take it intravenously,
it can cause some nasty effects.
The biggest difference,
though, is that this
bilateral high frequency
sensorineural hearing loss
can typically go away after 24 to 48 hours
after getting off of the loop diuretic.
One thing that a lot of people don't know
is that these non-steroidal
anti-inflammatory drugs
that are used to treat
headaches and fevers
are actually really toxic to your hearing
if you take them in large doses.
Some of the common NSAIDs include aspirin,
ibuprofen, Celecoxib, and naproxen.
Individuals who experience
ototoxic effects
from these drugs will often
experience tinnitus first,
followed by high frequency
sensorineural hearing loss.
However, the ototoxic
effects of these drugs
typically subside after one to three days
when you stop taking the medications.
On a side note, it is widely speculated
that radio personality Rush
Limbaugh's hearing loss
is due to the abuse of
another drug called Vicodin,
which is a combination of the
common analgesic acetaminophen
along with hydrocodone,
which ultimately led
to his need for cochlear implants.
Chemotherapeutic drugs,
often used to treat cancer,
are widely recognized to
cause hearing loss, especially
if they are platinum-based
chemotherapeutic drugs.
Drugs like Cisplatin,
carboplatin, vinblastine,
and vincristine are known
to cause bilateral high frequency
sensorineural hearing loss
that is permanent.
This hearing loss can progress
into the low frequencies
with time, and transient
tinnitus is also common
with these drugs, as well.
The ototoxic effects of
chemotherapeutic drugs
really depends on dosage and age.
Obviously the more dosage that you have
or the more that you take of these drugs,
the more effect it will
have on your hearing,
and also if you are on either
end of the age spectrum,
so if you're really old or really young,
you're more susceptible, as well.
And Quinine, which is
an antimalarial drug,
is widely known to cause high frequency
sensorineural hearing
loss that is reversible.
The hearing loss caused by
quinine is part of a condition
called cinchonism, which
also results in dizziness,
headaches, nausea, and vision changes.
Now if you are taking
any medications at all,
I highly recommend that
you talk to your physician
or to your pharmacist to see
if any of the medications
that you are taking have ototoxic effects.
And if they do, ask them if
there are any alternative drugs
that are just as effective
but do not have those side effects.
In addition to medication,
there are some environmental factors
that can also be ototoxic.
These include heavy metals like mercury,
manganese, and lead, and
also some chemical agents,
and bear with me again,
here, like styrene,
toluene, trichloroethylene,
and butyl nitrate
For individuals who work
in a manufacturing setting
or who work with heavy cleaning solutions,
you may be exposing
yourself to these chemicals.
If you notice that your
hearing is changing,
whether it's to medications or
other environmental factors,
I highly recommend that you
have your hearing tested
right away.
At the end of the day, some exposure
to ototoxic medications may be required
to preserve life.
However, you should always
be aware and cautious
of these ototoxic agents and
avoid them if at all possible.
That's it for this video.
If you have any questions, leave them
in the comments section below.
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Also, feel free to check out
my website, drcliffaud.com.
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