No therapy is currently available to reverse the serious damage that can be caused by ototoxic drugs, such as permanent hearing loss and balance disorders. Pdf ototoxicity, drugs, chemicals, mobile phones and. The american tinnitus association ata recognizes that the following ototoxic drugs may cause more permanent tinnitus symptoms. This section of the ear contains both the hearing mechanism and the vestibulocochlear nerve, the nerve that sends hearing and balance information to the brain. Yet, the existence of substantial information on ototoxicity monitoring allows. Ototoxic harmful to the ear drugs can cause temporary and sometimes permanent impairment of auditory nerve function. Certain medications and drugsboth physicianprescribed and overthe. Ototoxic definition is producing, involving, or being adverse effects on organs or nerves involved in hearing or balance. Why you should care about ototoxic medications the med. Ototoxicity in dogs and cats dermatology clinic for animals. Occupational ototoxins have not commanded as much attention, yet pose a significant health risk to our workforce. Ototoxic definition of ototoxic by the free dictionary. Trauma, surgery, direct contact with or distribution to inner ear cochlear fluids interstitial fluid and cerebral spinal fluid ototoxic drugs enter hair cells through transduction channels and it generates free radicals or cause formation of adducts in dna, both of which activate apoptosis suicide.
In this book you will learn that some ototoxic drugs slowly and insidiously rob you of your hearing, cause your ears to ring or destroy your balance. The sources may include the drugs consumed by the patient on therapeutic or non therapeutic purposes and also the compounds present in the environment. The effects of ototoxicity can be reversible and temporary, or irreversible and permanent. Several drugs with potential ototoxic effects are commonly used as a standard therapy in many types of cancer. The following are some major antioxidant mechanisms. Pdf on jan 1, 2014, kay w chang and others published ototoxicity find, read and. Salicylates such as aspirin in large enough doses may cause ringing in the ears and then a temporary decrease in hearing that ceases when the person. Definition damage to the cochlea or vestibular apparatus from exposure to a chemical source. The shocking truth about prescription drugs, medications, chemicals and herbals that can and do damage our ears neil g.
Ototoxicity monitoring as part of risk monitoring in the. The shocking truth about prescription drugs, medications, chemicals and herbals that can and do damage our ears. Drug interactions and ears little is known about how ototoxic drugs adversely affect our ears. While numerous prescription drugs can cause both hearing loss and tinnitus, some of the products available over the counter or in grocery store aisles might also be dangerous to your hearing. Sensorineural hearing loss from ototoxic drugs typically develops over weeks after exposure. These include medicines used to treat serious infections, cancer, and heart disease. The center for hearing and communication encourages you to take responsibility in knowing which drugs you should try to avoid. Prescription drugs and other chemicals that can and do damage our ears by bauman. Therefore, prevention of ototoxicity requires an individualized ototoxicity monitoring program in collaboration with the oncology team.
Other, newer drugs have been implicated as ototoxic as well, but solid scientific proof is often lacking. List of ototoxic drugs that cause tinnitus tinnifree. Before prescribing any drug with ototoxic potential these group of high risk patients must be kept in mind. Many chemicals have ototoxic potential, including overthecounter drugs, prescription medications, and environmental chemicals. Occupational ototoxins ear poisons and hearing loss. Depending on the medication and dosage, the effects of ototoxic medications can be temporary or permanent. Audiological monitoring of patients receiving ototoxic drugs dawn konradmartin veterans affairs rehabilitation research and development service, national center for rehabilitative auditory research, va medical center portland, or department of otolaryngology. For a more complete list of medications we recommend. Hearing is an essential sense of the individual, which is crucial for verbal communication and social living. Certain medications can damage the ear, resulting in hearing loss, ringing in the ear, or balance disorders. Pharmacological drugs inducing ototoxicity, vestibular symptoms.
Pdf ototoxicity, drugs, chemicals, mobile phones and deafness. Ototoxicity in dogs and cats there is conflicting information in the literature about ototoxicity of topical medications in the canine ear. American academy of audiology position statement and. Here is a list of medications that can potentially cause tinnitus. Subscribe to americas largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced searchad free. Toxicity to the ear is an insidious state because it can go undetected for so long. One source of acquired hearing loss is the use of ototoxic medications for the treatment of cancer. There are more than 200 known ototoxic medications prescription and overthecounter on the market today. Army, for example, requires any employee exposed to known or suspected. Choose from 128 different sets of ototoxicity flashcards on quizlet.
Ototoxic definition of ototoxic by medical dictionary. Over time, longterm usage of certain prescription medications can result in tinnitus or hearing loss. Certain prescription drugs can, over time, have an ototoxic effect on your hearing, causing hearing loss and ear ringing from tinnitus. Prescription drugs and other chemicals that can and do damage our ears by bauman, neil g. Erythromycin, tetracyclines, analgesics hearing loss is often reversible after decreasing or stopping the offending agent. Fortunately, not everybody who takes one of these drugs will experience ototoxic side effects. Hearing loss be transient for some agents used at therapeutic levels e. Therefore, in addition to thinking drugs, also think chemicals. There are a multitude of antioxidants and free radical scavengers, but the following are some of the major factors. Ototoxic medications include certain antibiotics, chemotherapeutic drugs, diuretics, and salicylates in high doses. Because of this, ototoxic drugs may cause lack of hearing, and loss of sense of balance. Hearing and balance problems caused by these drugs can sometimes be reversed when the drug therapy is discontinued. Despite the risk of hearing disorders, they are used to treat serious health conditions for which.
Medical precautions, ototoxic drugs, medications, berard. Ototoxicity is drug or chemical damage to the inner ear. The ototoxic effects are very similar to those of aspirin. Since then, scientific studies have shown that these drugs cause ototoxicity in animals and people. Ototoxic chemicals are chemicals that result in hearing loss introduction it is well documented that occupational noise exposure is a significant health hazard that leads to permanent noiseinduced hearing loss nihl and we have the national exposure standard for occupational noise to deal with this. These include medicines used to treat serious infections. Ototoxic agents, ototoxicity management, audiologists. Pharmacological intervention in the field of ototoxicity springerlink.
Ototoxic synergism occurs if several ototoxic drugs are administered concurrently, potentiation of the ototoxicity is likely to occur, even when the dose of either drug is within the recommended limits. Ototoxic chemicals chemicals that result in hearing loss. I just bought a 798 page pdf book listing all maybe mostly all ototoxic drugs ototoxic drugs exposed 3rd edition. Possibly 75% of the ototoxic drugs have a low occurrence ototoxic effect of 1 or 2 per 1,000. Druginduced ototoxicity ear, nose, and throat disorders. List of ototoxic medications sound relief hearing center. Some of the most important drugs are also potentially nephrotoxic, thus it is highly desirable to adjust the dose of an ototoxic drug on the basis of. Most information about topical medication ototoxicity is derived from studies on guinea pigs and chinchillas. When a solution of an aminoglycoside antibiotic is used on the skin together with an aminoglycoside antibiotic used intravenously, there is. O ce and bedroom in potential cases may be made emf free. Anyone reading this list of ototoxic drugs is strongly advised not to discontinue taking any prescribed medication without first contacting the prescribing physician.
Such drugs can cause hearing loss, hyperacusis, tinnitus, and other phantom sounds and a whole host of balance problems. The mechanism of aminoglycoside ototoxicity is mediated by disruption of mitochondrial protein synthesis and the formation of free oxygen radicals. Ototoxic drugs should not be used for otic topical application when the tympanic membrane is perforated because the drugs might diffuse into the. Ototoxic medications northern virginia resource center for deaf.
There are many wellknown ototoxic drugs used in clinical situations, and. Current practice of ototoxicity management across the. Occupational ototoxins ear poisons and hearing loss the problem it is a wellknown fact that hazardous noise exposure in the workplace can cause noise induced hearing loss. All of these drugs have been reported to damage your ears are ototoxic in some way or anothersuch as causing hearing loss, tinnitus or balance problems.
Aminoglycosides seem to potentiate glutamate receptors in the cochlea that promote degeneration of hair cells and cochlear neurons. Audiological monitoring of patients receiving ototoxic drugs. With increasing noise pollution, mobile phones, ototoxic drugs, ototoxic chemicals the. American academy of audiology position statement and clinical practice guidelines. Find out quickly if your medications may be the culprits.
When a medication is ototoxic, it has a toxic effect on the ear or its nerve supply. Substances from the first group ototoxic pharmaceutical drugs are probably the most wellknown. Ototoxicity occurs when a person ingests chemicals or certain medications that can adversely affect the way the inner ear functions. Please speak with your doctor before discontinuing or reducing your intake of any medication. Ototoxic drugs exposed 3rd edition reveals how prescription drugs damage ears far more than anyone imagines. Advice on medical precautions, ototoxic drugs and ait. Hearing loss secondary to the use of some ototoxic medications is a. Dramatically less is known about ototoxic side effects when two or more ototoxic drugs are consumed at the same time. Ototoxic medications have a toxic effect on the nerve cells of your inner ears. Ototoxicity definition of ototoxicity by medical dictionary. Although ototoxic medications play an imperative role in. A summary of the bases and the nature of the ototoxic effects of these drugs is provided in the appendix page 15. Ototoxic substances are estimated to be between 5,200 and 56,000 agents.
Ototoxicity is the property of being toxic to the ear oto, specifically the cochlea or auditory nerve and sometimes the vestibular system, for example, as a side effect of a drug. The method of action of ototoxic medications differs somewhat among the various drugs. Ototoxicity may be reversible or may be permanent, depending on the type of medication used, dosage and duration of treatment. These drugs often cannot be replaced easily by alternate drug regimens. Pdf on jul 1, 2015, mk taneja and others published ototoxicity, drugs. Learn ototoxicity with free interactive flashcards.
Concurrent exposure to ototoxic chemicals and noise many common industrial chemicals are ototoxic poisonous to the ears and as damaging. Clearly, ototoxic drugs are far more common and prevalent than we realize. Vinca alkaloids are antitumor drugs derived from an alka. The panorama of druginduced hearing loss has widened over last few decades. The most frequently used ototoxic drugs are the platinum coordination complexes, aminoglycosides, loop diuretics, and nonsteroidal antiinflammatory agents humes, 1999. Ototoxic drugs exposed center for hearing loss help. These are usually ototoxic when given intravenously for acute kidney failure, acute hypertensive crisis, or acute pulmonary edemacongestive heart failure. Ototoxic drugs, chemicals and heavy metals in the workplace. Identify the most common classes of ototoxic medications. Concurrent exposure to ototoxic chemicals and noise.
Druginduced ototoxicity ototoxicity is a wellknown adverse effect of platinumbased chemotherapy drugs, resulting in hearing loss and tinnitus. Ototoxicity monitoring as part of risk monitoring in the ehdi system. Its best to not only become educated about what your doctor is prescribing you but also research options for other drugs and look for a second opinion. Some of them, like the chemotherapy drugs, are more likely to have hearingrelated side effects, while others are less likely. Ototoxicity monitoring 102009 3 introduction a variety of drugs, such as certain powerful antibiotics and some antineoplastic drugs generally used against poten tially lifethreatening diseases can cause auditory andor vestibular dysfunction. An estimated 15,000 to 160,000 drugs, chemicals andor heavy metals may be toxic to the senses. The 5 classes of antihypertensive drugs in this report include thealpha blockers, ace inhibitors, angiotensin2receptor blockers, beta blockers and calciumchannel blockers. Ototoxic medications cause damage to the sensory cells used in hearing and balance. It is important that you, the patient, take responsibility in knowing which drugs you should try to avoid.