Examination of Hearing in a Rheumatoid Arthritis Population: Role of Extended-High-Frequency Audiometry in the Diagnosis of Subclinical Involvement

Abstract EN

Objective.

The aim of this study is to analyze the high-frequency hearing levels in patients with rheumatoid arthritis and to determine the relationship between hearing loss, disease duration, and immunological parameters.

Materials and Methods.

A descriptive cross-sectional study including fifty-three patients with rheumatoid arthritis was performed.

The control group consisted of 71 age- and sex-matched patients from the study population (consecutively recruited in Madrid “Area 9,” from January 2010 to February 2011).

Both a pure tone audiometry and an extended-high-frequency audiometry were performed.

Results.

Extended-high-frequency audiometry diagnosed sensorineural hearing loss in 69.8% of the patients which exceeded the results obtained with pure tone audiometry (43% of the patients).

This study found significant correlations in patients with sensorineural hearing loss related to age, sex, and serum anti-cardiolipin (aCL) antibody levels.

Conclusion.

Sensorineural hearing loss must be considered within the clinical context of rheumatoid arthritis.

Our results demonstrated that an extended-high-frequency audiometry is a useful audiological test that must be performed within the diagnostic and follow-up testing of patients with rheumatoid arthritis, providing further insight into a disease-modifying treatment or a hearing loss preventive treatment.