Workers are commonly exposed to multiple factors and substances that are hazardous to health. For instance, in 2005, approximately 30% of the European workers reported being exposed to noise during at least a quarter of the time spent in their work environment, 11% reported inhaling vapors such as solvents and thinners; 19% reported exposure to smoke, fumes, powder, or dust; and 14% reported ha...

Introduction: Sensorineural hearing loss in chronic renal failure is believed to be of multifactorial etiology. Associated hypertension and diabetes mellitus, use of ototoxic drugs, hemodialysis and the changes in metabolic parameters are the various reasons quoted for the hearing loss. Objectives: Our study attempts to correlate the hearing thresholds with the multiple parameters like blood le...

OBJECTIVE To determine the prevalence of hearing loss and to analyze the results of newborn hearing screening and audiological diagnosis in private health care systems. METHODS Cross-sectional and retrospective study in a database of newborn hearing screening performed by a private clinic in neonates born in private hospitals of Porto Velho, Rondônia, Northern Brazil. The screening results, the...

Studies of sensorineural hearing loss have long suggested that survival of spiral ganglion neurons (SGNs) depends on trophic support provided by their peripheral targets, the inner hair cells (IHCs): following ototoxic drugs or acoustic overexposure, IHC death is rapid whereas SGN degeneration is always delayed. However, recent noise-trauma studies show that SGNs can die even when hair cells su...

This review introduces the pathology of aminoglycoside antibiotic and the cisplatin chemotherapy classes of drugs, discusses oxidative stress in the inner ear as a primary trigger for cell damage, and delineates the ensuing cell death pathways. Among potentially ototoxic (damaging the inner ear) therapeutics, the platinum-based anticancer drugs and the aminoglycoside antibiotics are of critical...

The efferent system of the ear possesses several distinct functions, in particular noise protection, mediation of selective attention and improvement of signal to noise ratio. It also supports adaptation and frequency selectivity by modification of the micromechanical properties of outer hair cells. There are many differences in anatomy and physiology between the medial and lateral olivocochlea...