Prevalence of extended high-frequency hearing loss among adolescents from two rural areas in Colombia.

OBJECTIVE: Worldwide research trends on the prevalence of hearing loss within young rural populations are scarce. Current evidence suggests extended high-frequency audiometry could be a sensitive predictor to detect subclinical hearing loss. This study aimed to determine the prevalence of hearing loss through conventional pure tone (0.25-8 kHz) and extended high-frequency (9-20 kHz) audiometry tests in a group of adolescents aged 13 to 19 years old from two rural areas of Colombia. A sociodemographic and associated factor for hearing loss questionnaire was applied. DESIGN: Cross-sectional study. STUDY SAMPLE: Three hundred sixty-six adolescents aged 13 to 19 years old from two rural municipalities in Colombia: Soracá, and Palmas del Socorro. RESULTS: Hearing loss prevalence assessed through pure tone audiometry was 3.28% in right ears and 3.83% in left ears while through extended high-frequency audiometry was 14.21% and 13.11%, respectively. Associated factors found by the logistic regression were age (OR: 1.36; CI 95% 1.13-1.64) and obesity (OR: 3.74; CI 95% 1.07-13.11). CONCLUSIONS: Using 15 dB as the normal hearing threshold parameter for audiometric frequencies, our results suggest that extended high-frequency hearing loss is already widespread among rural adolescents. This highlights the need for research on extended high-frequency audiometry in rural school-aged children.

A Case Report of Treatment With Cariprazine in a Recurrent Psychosis Presumably Induced by Methamphetamine.

This case report describes a 31-year-old male patient with psychosis presumably related to methamphetamine-associated psychosis (MAP). Our patient was experiencing persistent symptoms of visual, tactile, and auditory hallucinations after cessation of methamphetamine. He has a medical history of a substance use disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder, attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder, nicotine dependence and major depressive disorder. Previously, he received a wide range of antipsychotic drug treatment regimens at other psychiatric facilities, all with some degree of effect, but never with complete symptom relief. At the time of admission to our inpatient clinic, he was started on cariprazine and reported a significant decrease in visual, auditory, and tactile hallucinations with complete cessation for a period of two weeks. There appears to be a unique ability of cariprazine's mechanism of action to reverse symptoms of the presumable diagnosis of MAP that is unable to be achieved with other antipsychotic medications.