Abstract

Ototoxicity can be defined as the capacity of a drug or chemical to cause damage to the inner ear structure and\or function. This phenomenon may involve the cochlea, vestibule or both. The symptoms of ototoxicity include hearing loss, tinnitus, and vertigo. Today, the number of audiologic tests for monitoring ototoxicity has increased. These include conventional audiometry, high frequency audiometry, electrocochleography, otoacoustic emissions (OAEs), and auditory brainstem responses (ABR). In this review, an evaluation of audiometric methods was made for monitoring ototoxicity.

Keywords : Audiology/methods; auditory threshold; cochlea/drug effects; ear/drug effects; hearing disorders/chemically induced/ diagnosis; hearing tests; otoacoustic emissions, spontaneous