Mahafzah MT, Mahafza T, Omari H, Al Hawari HH (2018) Investigating the Possible Audiological Effects of Hypothyroidism. J phonetAudiol 4: 137
Objective: We investigated audiological function in
patients diagnosed with primary hypothyroidism secondary to Hashimoto’s
thyroiditis.
Methods: Forty-one patients
diagnosed with primary hypothyroidism secondary to Hashimoto’s
thyroiditis and 20 control subjects participated in this study.
Otoscopic examination, immittance testing, pure tone audiometry, and
otoacoustic emission testing were completed on all participants. In
addition, all participants were screened for the presence of tinnitus.
Results:
All participants’ demonstrated normal otoscopic examination and
0.226-kHz tympanometry test findings. Pure tone audiometric (PTA)
testing revealed mild sensorineural hearing loss (SNHL) in 16 patients
diagnosed with primary hypothyroidism (39%) compared to only one
participant in the control group. Eight patients with primary
hypothyroidism reported bothersome tinnitus (19.5%), and transient
evoked otoacoustic emissions (TEOAE) were absent in 8 left ears (19.5%)
and 4 right ears (9.75%).
Conclusion:
Hypothyroidism secondary to Hashimoto’s thyroiditis may be a cause of
mild SNHL, particularly at high frequencies, in addition to bothersome
tinnitus. Absent otoacoustic emissions suggest cochlear outer hair cells
as the possible lesion site in patients with hypothyroidism