ABSTRACT
OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to determine the characteristics of hearing loss in patients with Behçet's disease. METHODS: Twenty-six consecutive patients with Behçet's disease and a control group consisting of 25 age-matched healthy subjects were prospectively included in this study. Pure tone and speech audiometry, tympanometry, distortion product otoacoustic emission testing, and auditory brainstem-evoked response assessment were performed in the patients and controls. RESULTS: The pure tone audiograms and the results of distortion product otoacoustic emission testing showed statistically significant hearing loss in the Behçet's disease patients (p < 0.05). Auditory brainstem-evoked response results were not significantly different between the patients and controls (p > 0.05). CONCLUSION: The findings of the present study demonstrated that audiological involvement is more frequent in patients with Behçet's disease than in healthy controls. Therefore, all patients with Behçet's disease should be regularly monitored by an otolaryngologist and be given information about the possibility of inner-ear involvement.
Subject(s)
Audiometry , Behcet Syndrome/physiopathology , Acoustic Impedance Tests , Adult , Audiometry, Pure-Tone , Audiometry, Speech , Evoked Potentials, Auditory , Female , Functional Laterality , Humans , Male , Prospective StudiesABSTRACT
OBJECTIVE: This experimental study aimed to investigate the effects of vitamins E, B and C and L-carnitine in preventing cisplatin-induced ototoxicity. METHODS: Twenty-five adult, male, Wistar albino rats were randomly allocated to receive intraperitoneal cisplatin either alone or preceded by vitamins B, E or C or L-carnitine. Auditory brainstem response (i.e. hearing thresholds and wave I-IV intervals) and distortion product otoacoustic emissions (i.e. signal-to-noise ratios) were recorded before and 72 hours after cisplatin administration. RESULTS: The following statistically significant differences were seen: control group pre- vs post-treatment wave I-IV interval values (p < 0.05); control vs vitamin E and B groups' I-IV interval values (p < 0.05); control vs other groups' hearing thresholds; vitamin E vs vitamin B and C and L-carnitine groups' hearing thresholds (p < 0.05); and vitamin B vs vitamin C and L-carnitine groups' hearing thresholds (p < 0.05). Statistically significant decreases were seen when comparing the initial and final signal-to-noise ratios in the control, vitamin B and L-carnitine groups (2000 and 3000 Hz; p < 0.01), and the initial and final signal-to-noise ratios in the control group (at 4000 Hz; p < 0.01). CONCLUSION: Vitamins B, E and C and L-carnitine appear to reduce cisplatin-induced ototoxicity in rats. The use of such additional treatments to decrease cisplatin-induced ototoxicity in humans is still under discussion.
