TY - JOUR
T1 - Hearing and Vestibular Loss with Misuse of Opioids and Illicit Drugs
T2 - A Review of the Literature
AU - Hughes, Michelle L.
AU - Rodriguez, Amanda I.
AU - Hatch, Jonathan
AU - Zoucha, Kenneth
N1 - Funding Information:
This study was funded by the Nebraska Tobacco Settlement Biomedical Research Development Funds and supported by the Rural Drug Addiction Research Center (NIH COBRE: P20GM130461). The funding bodies did not have a role in the preparation of this manuscript.
Funding Information:
Michelle L. Hughes is an employee of the University of Nebraska-Lincoln; has a courtesy appointment at the University of Nebraska Medical Center; has current and past grant funding from the National Institutes of Health (NIH), the University of Nebraska Tobacco Settlement Biomedical Research Fund, and the Rural Drug Addiction Research Center; receives honoraria from the NIH as a member of the Communication Disorders Review Committee; and receives royalties from Plural Publishing. Amanda I. Rodriguez is an employee of the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and has current grant funding from the University of Nebraska Tobacco Settlement Biomedical Research Fund and the Rural Drug Addiction Research Center. Jonathan Hatch is an employee of the University of Nebraska Medical Center with current NIH funding. Kenneth Zoucha is an employee of the University of Nebraska Medical Center and has current funding from the Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services and the Rural Drug Addiction Research Center.
Publisher Copyright:
© 2022 S. Karger AG, Basel.
PY - 2022/7/1
Y1 - 2022/7/1
N2 - Background: The purpose of this review was to summarize the literature regarding the effects of opioids and illicit drugs on the auditory and vestibular systems. Methods: Data were sourced from published papers reporting hearing loss (HL) and/or vestibular loss (VL) following misuse or overdose of opioids or illicit drugs. Most papers consisted of retrospective single-case reports, with few retrospective reviews or prospective cohort studies. Search terms included variations of HL, VL, opioids, and illicit drugs. Search results yielded 51 articles published between 1976 and 2021. A total of 44 articles were reviewed after excluding studies that were not available in English (n = 3), only described acute effects in healthy cohorts (n = 3) or only described general health aspects in a group on methadone maintenance (n = 1). Results: Sixteen studies reported ototoxicity from illicit drugs, 27 from prescription opioids, and 1 was unspecified. This review shows that HL associated with amphetamines and cocaine was typically sudden, bilateral, and temporary. HL from cocaine/crack and heroin often presented with greatest losses in the mid-frequency range. HL associated with opioids was typically sudden, bilateral, moderately severe to profound, and in most cases permanent. The literature is sparse regarding VL from illicit drugs and opioids. Conclusion: Practitioners who see patients for sudden or rapidly progressive HL or VL with no apparent cause should inquire about misuse of illicit drugs and opioids, particularly when the HL does not respond to steroid treatment.
AB - Background: The purpose of this review was to summarize the literature regarding the effects of opioids and illicit drugs on the auditory and vestibular systems. Methods: Data were sourced from published papers reporting hearing loss (HL) and/or vestibular loss (VL) following misuse or overdose of opioids or illicit drugs. Most papers consisted of retrospective single-case reports, with few retrospective reviews or prospective cohort studies. Search terms included variations of HL, VL, opioids, and illicit drugs. Search results yielded 51 articles published between 1976 and 2021. A total of 44 articles were reviewed after excluding studies that were not available in English (n = 3), only described acute effects in healthy cohorts (n = 3) or only described general health aspects in a group on methadone maintenance (n = 1). Results: Sixteen studies reported ototoxicity from illicit drugs, 27 from prescription opioids, and 1 was unspecified. This review shows that HL associated with amphetamines and cocaine was typically sudden, bilateral, and temporary. HL from cocaine/crack and heroin often presented with greatest losses in the mid-frequency range. HL associated with opioids was typically sudden, bilateral, moderately severe to profound, and in most cases permanent. The literature is sparse regarding VL from illicit drugs and opioids. Conclusion: Practitioners who see patients for sudden or rapidly progressive HL or VL with no apparent cause should inquire about misuse of illicit drugs and opioids, particularly when the HL does not respond to steroid treatment.
KW - Hearing loss
KW - Illicit drugs
KW - Opioids
KW - Ototoxicity
KW - Vestibular loss
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85126026434&partnerID=8YFLogxK
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/citedby.url?scp=85126026434&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1159/000521965
DO - 10.1159/000521965
M3 - Review article
C2 - 35172308
AN - SCOPUS:85126026434
SN - 1420-3030
VL - 27
SP - 271
EP - 281
JO - Audiology and Neurotology
JF - Audiology and Neurotology
IS - 4
ER -