When you begin on a course of medication, it’s normal to want to be informed about any possible side effects. Can it give you a stomach ache? Will it cause your mouth to dry out? Cause insomnia? You may not even know about some of the more impactful side effects, including hearing loss. Lots of different medications are known to cause this condition which medical professionals label as ototoxicity.
So can this problem be triggered by a lot of medications? The answer is unclear, but there are plenty that are known to trigger ototoxic symptoms. So which drugs do you personally need to be aware of?
What to know about ototoxicity
How is it possible for your hearing to be affected by medication? There are three distinct places certain drugs can damage your hearing:
- The stria vascularis: The stria vascularis is the portion of the cochlea that produces fluid called endolymph. Both balance and hearing are impacted by too much or too little endolymph.
- The cochlea: That’s the seashell-shaped part of the inner ear that takes sound and converts it into an electrical signal that the brain can comprehend. Damage to the cochlea affects the range of sound you can hear, usually beginning with high frequencies then extending to include lower ones.
- The vestibule of the ear: The cochlea is like a labyrinth, and situated right in the middle is the vestibule of the ear. It helps manage balance. When a medication triggers an ototoxic reaction to the vestibule of the inner ear, you can experience balance issues and the feeling that the room is spinning.
Do different drugs have different risk levels?
The checklist of drugs that can result in temporary or permanent hearing loss may surprise you. Many of them you most likely have in your medicine cabinet even now, and chances are you take them before you go to bed or when you have a headache.
At the top of the list of ototoxic medications are over-the-counter pain killers including:
- Naproxen
- Ibuprofen
You can add salicylates to the list, which is aspirin. When you stop using these drugs, your hearing will typically go back to normal.
Antibiotics are a close second for common ototoxic medications. Some of these may be familiar:
- Tobramycin
- Kanamycin
- Streptomycin
Tinnitus can also be induced by several common compounds
Some medications might cause tinnitus and others could result in loss of hearing. If you hear phantom noises, that may be tinnitus and it normally shows up as:
- Ringing
- A whooshing sound
- Popping
- Thumping
Certain diuretics will also cause tinnitus, here are a few of the primary offenders:
- Tonic water
- Marijuana
- Caffeine
- Nicotine
You might not realize that the cup of coffee or black tea in the morning can trigger ringing in your ears. The good news is it should clear up once the drug is out of your system. The following drugs are prescribed to treat tinnitus but ironically, they are themselves diuretics:
- Prednisone
- Lidocaine
- Amitriptyline
After you discontinue the medication, the symptoms should go away, and your doctor will be there to help you with anything you may need to know.
Ototoxicity has specific symptoms
Depending on what specific medications you’re using and the health of your hearing, your particular symptoms will vary.
Be on guard for:
- Vomiting
- Tinnitus
- Hearing loss on one or both sides
- Difficulty walking
- Blurred vision
- Poor balance
Keep yourself informed by always asking your doctor about the possible side effects of a medication, don’t hesitate to ask about ototoxicity. Get in touch with your doctor right away if you detect any tinnitus symptoms that might have been caused by an ototoxic response.
Also, schedule a hearing exam with us, a baseline hearing test is a practical measure that can help you preserve good hearing health throughout your life.
References
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7985331