ABSTRACT
OBJECTIVE: To investigate the association between changes in the outer hair cells and exposure to amplified music in a group of high-school students. MATERIALS AND METHODS: In this retrospective, case-control study, 86 subjects underwent audiometry, immittance audiometry, and distortion-product otoacoustic emission tests. The subjects were questioned about their listening habits and divided into 2 groups: exposed and unexposed. RESULTS: Most of the subjects had reduced function in their outer hair cells, mainly beginning at 8 kHz. Among 60 subjects-30 cases and 30 controls-75% were considered exposed and 25% unexposed. The exposed subjects were 9.33 times more likely to have altered outer hair cells than the unexposed subjects were. CONCLUSION: Exposure to amplified music is associated with reduced function in the hair cells.
Subject(s)
Hearing Loss, Noise-Induced/etiology , Music , Adolescent , Audiometry , Case-Control Studies , Female , Hair Cells, Auditory, Outer/pathology , Humans , Male , Otoacoustic Emissions, Spontaneous/physiology , Retrospective StudiesABSTRACT
OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the prevalence of misdiagnosis of the hearing impaired children, in order to investigate the existence of Auditory Neuropathy Spectrum Disorder. METHODS: Analytical, prospective study conducted with 15 participants (30 ears) aged 10-12 years, with bilateral sensorineural hearing loss, attending a Hearing Rehabilitation Center, accompanied by a multidisciplinary team with otolaryngologist, audiologist, psychologist, teacher and social worker. The participants underwent ENT examination and audiological assessment: tympanometry, acoustic reflexes, otoacoustic emissions test and Auditory Evoked response. RESULTS: From the total sample (30 ears), 8 ears (26.7%) presented absent responses in the Auditory Evoked response with the presence of cochlear microphonism. Within the selected eight ears, six (75%) showed presence of otoacoustic emissions test in isolated frequencies and two (25%) ears had otoacoustic emissions test even in the presence of the isolated frequencies. It was found that 26.7% of the ears tested presented results that are compatible with Auditory Neuropathy Spectrum Disorder. CONCLUSION: The results of this study have identified characteristics related to ANSD in 26.7% of ears tested, 6 participants with age over 10 years old, showing that misdiagnosis in hearing loss patients is still very frequent.
Subject(s)
Hearing Loss, Central/diagnosis , Audiometry , Child , Diagnostic Errors , Evoked Potentials, Auditory , Female , Humans , Male , Otoacoustic Emissions, Spontaneous , Prospective StudiesABSTRACT
The objective of the present study was to evaluate the integrity of the peripheral and central auditory systems of sickle cell disease (SCD) patients, through electrophysiological evaluation utilizing auditory evoked potentials, and comparing the results obtained in SCD patients with individuals without SCD. A total of 80 individuals were evaluated: 40 SCD patients; and 40 healthy age- and sex-matched controls. Brainstem auditory evoked response (BAER) was used to check neural integrity and electrophysiological thresholds, and cognitive potential (P300) to analyse the auditory selective attention. Despite the exclusion of individuals with comorbidities typical of SCD, the predominance of hearing loss among the patients was detected in 16 ears (20%). The absolute latencies of the BAER were within the expected range but the SCD group showed a small but statistically significant reduction of the interpeaks I-V, indicative of cochlear alteration. P300 latency and amplitude were adequate for both groups suggesting the absence of central auditory system abnormalities. The present findings suggest that SCD causes variable degree of cochlear abnormalities without evidence of neural problems.
