Regular use of aspirin, acetaminophen and nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, the most commonly used drugs in the US, may increase risk of hearing loss in men.
Abstract
Background
Hearing loss is a common sensory disorder, yet prospective data on potentially modifiable risk factors are limited. Regularly used analgesics, the most commonly used drugs in the US, may be ototoxic and contribute to hearing loss.
Methods
We examined the independent association between self-reported professionally diagnosed hearing loss and regular use of aspirin, nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), and acetaminophen in 26,917 men aged 40-74 years at baseline in 1986. Study participants completed detailed questionnaires at baseline and every 2 years thereafter. Incident cases of new-onset hearing loss were defined as those diagnosed after 1986. Cox proportional hazards multivariate regression was used to adjust for potential confounding factors.
Results
During 369,079 person-years of follow-up, 3488 incident cases of hearing loss were reported. Regular use of each analgesic was independently associated with an increased risk of hearing loss. Multivariate-adjusted hazard ratios of hearing loss in regular users (2+ times/week) compared with men who used the specified analgesic.
Conclusions
Regular use of aspirin, NSAIDs, or acetaminophen increases the risk of hearing loss in men, and the impact is larger on younger individuals.
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— Sharon G. Curhan, MD, ScM, Roland Eavey, MD, Josef Shargorodsky, MD, Gary C. Curhan, MD, ScD
This article originally appeared in the March 2010 issue of The American Journal of Medicine.
