Search

Background and Aim: COVID-19 is an acute respiratory disease, caused by a coronavirus named SARS-CoV-2. Previous reports suggest an association between COVID-19 infection and Hearing Loss (HL). We have investigated the Universal Newborn Hearing Screening (UNHS) results in the time period of COVID-19 epidemic in Guilan Province, north of Iran. Methods: We analyzed UNHS results from10 major obstetrics hospitals from 20th Mar 2020 to 19th Mar 2021, and compared the total UNHS positive/“refer” and total neonatal HL reports with the same time periods of recent three years. The prevalence of risk factors for HL were analyzed during the same period. Results: The total number of childbirth was decreased significantly from 27735 birth cases in Mar 2017-2018 to 18216 births in Mar 2020-2021 (p<0.001), but the total “refer” rate was significantly increased from 63.0 per 1,000 births in Mar 2019-2020 to 79.8 in Mar 2020-2021 (OR=1.29, 95% CI: 1.19-1.39, p<0.001), and also increased from 74.7 per 1,000 births in Mar 2017-2020 to 79.8 in Mar 2020-2021 (OR=1.07, 95% CI: 1.01-1.14, p=0.020). The HL rate increased from 10.3 per 10,000 births in Mar 2019-2020 and from 11.4 per 10,000 births in Mar 2017-2020 to 18.7 in Mar 2020-2021 (OR=1.81 and 1.63, 95% CI: 1.06-3.09 and 1.10-2.44, p=0.028 and 0.015, respectively). The prevalence of preterm birth (p=0.039) and neonatal intensive care unit stay (p=0.016) was increased significantly during Mar 2020-2021. Conclusion: The chance of “refer” results and neonatal HL, found in the UNHS program, increased during the COVID-19 epidemic in comparison to the past years. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Tinnitus can be associated with many auditory and non-auditory factors, and its prevalence varies widely in the literature. There is no large sample of published data on tinnitus prevalence and its associated factors in Iran. Here, we analyzed the PERSIAN Guilan Cohort Study (PGCS) data and reported the prevalence of tinnitus and some of the risk factors related to tinnitus in the Iranian population. Materials and Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted on 10520 men and women between 35 and 70 years old. The prevalence of tinnitus and associations between tinnitus and age, sex, habitat, marital status, employment status, socioeconomic status, educational level, lifestyle habits, and comorbid diseases were examined using simple and multiple logistic regression analyses. Results: The prevalence of tinnitus was 6.4% in this study. Based on the adjusted analysis, only older age (odds ratio: 2.60, 95% confidence interval: 1.88 - 3.60), residency in a rural area (odds ratio: 1.22, 95% confidence interval: 1.03 - 1.44), cigarette smoking (odds ratio:1.33, 95% confidence interval: 1.04 - 1.72), and having other comorbidities (odds ratio: 2.75, 95% confidence interval: 2.19 - 3.44) were related to tinnitus. In addition, the results of subgroup analyses by sex were mostly consistent with the overall analysis. Conclusions: Our results revealed that the prevalence of tinnitus in the north of Iran is comparable with other communities. Age and other comorbidities were among the most related factors to tinnitus. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives Considering the common neurological origins, there is a relationship between the sensory gating and cognitive functions. However, there is no adequate information on this issue. In this study, auditory event-related potentials and the sensory gating performance were assessed in P50, N100 and P200 waves. Besides, their relationship with cognitive performance in auditory and visual modalities was investigated. Materials & Methods Nineteen normal primary school students (14 boys) were tested in Tehran, Iran from 2017 to 2018. In the auditory modality, the Persian version of the non-word repetition test and monaural selective auditory attention test (mSAAT) were used for assessment of the working memory and selective attention, respectively. In order to evaluate the visual working memory and visual selective attention, Rey-Osterrieth complex figure, selective and divided attention test were used, respectively. A 32-channel EEG system was used for electrophysiological assessment. Results The P50 sensory gating was negatively correlated with the visual selective attention (P=0.034, r=-0.49) and N100 sensory gating was negatively correlated with the auditory working memory (P=0.043, r=-0.48) as well as visual selective attention (P=0.039, r=-0.47). For P200, there was a significant negative relationship with auditory selective attention in the right ear (P=0.034, r=-0.49). Conclusion Sensory gating in children is not a modality-specific phenomenon. Sensory gating in a modality could be associated with cognitive functions in other modalities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

While most tinnitus cases have some degree of hearing impairment, a small percent of the patients admitted to Ear, Nose and Throat Clinics or Hearing Evaluation Centers are those who complain of tinnitus despite having normal hearing thresholds. Present study was performed in order to better understanding of the probable causes of tinnitus and to investigate possible changes in the cochlear and auditory brainstem function in normal hearing patients with chronic tinnitus. Altogether, 63 ears (31 ears with tinnitus and 32 ears without tinnitus) were examined. The prevalence of transient evoked otoacoustic emissions and characteristics of the auditory brainstem response components including wave latencies and wave amplitudes was determined in the two groups and analyzed with appropriate statistical methods. There was no difference between the prevalence of transient evoked emissions in the two groups. The mean difference between absolute latencies of waves I, III and V was less than 0.1 ms between the two groups that were not statistically significant. Also, the interpeak latency values of I-III, III-V and I-V in both groups had no significant difference. Only the V/I amplitude ratio in the tinnitus group was significantly larger than the other group (p =0.04). The changes observed in amplitude of waves, especially in the later ones, can be considered as an Audiologic finding in normal hearing tinnitus subjects and its possible role in generation of tinnitus in these patients must be investigated. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background and Aim: While most of the people with tinnitus have some degrees of hearing impairment, a small percent of patients admitted to ear, nose and throat clinics or hearing evaluation centers are those who complain of tinnitus despite having normal hearing thresholds. This study was performed to better understanding of the reasons of probable causes of tinnitus and to investigate possible changes in the auditory brainstem function in normal-hearing patients with chronic tinnitus. Methods: In this comparative cross-sectional, descriptive and analytic study, 52 ears (26 with and 26 without tinnitus) were examined. Components of the auditory brainstem response (ABR) including wave latencies and wave amplitudes were determined in the two groups and analyzed using appropriate statistical methods. Results: The mean differences between the absolute latencies of waves I, III and V was less than 0.1 ms between the two groups that was not statistically significant. Also, the interpeak latency values of waves I-III, III-V and I-V in both groups had no significant difference. Only, the V/I amplitude ratio in the tinnitus group was significantly higher (p=0.04). Conclusion: The changes observed in amplitude of waves, especially in the latter ones, can be considered as an indication of plastic changes in neuronal activity and its possible role in generation of tinnitus in normal-hearing patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Neonatal hyperbilirubinemia is one of the most important factors affecting the auditory system and can cause sensorineural hearing loss. This study investigated the relationship between behavioral hearing thresholds in children with a history of jaundice and the maximum level of bilirubin concentration in the blood. Materials and Methods: This study was performed on 18 children with a mean age of 5.6 years and with a history of neonatal hyperbilirubinemia. Behavioral hearing thresholds, transient evoked emissions and brainstem evoked responses were evaluated in all children. Results: Six children (33.3%) had normal hearing thresholds and the remaining (66.7%) had some degree of hearing loss. There was no significant relationship (r=-0.28, P=0.09) between the mean total bilirubin levels and behavioral hearing thresholds in all samples. A transient evoked emission was seen only in children with normal hearing thresholds however in eight cases brainstem evoked responses had not detected. Conclusion: Increased blood levels of bilirubin at the neonatal period were potentially one of the causes of hearing loss. There was a lack of a direct relationship between neonatal bilirubin levels and the average hearing thresholds which emphasizes on the necessity of monitoring the various amounts of bilirubin levels. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]