A study on prevalence of hearing loss as a complication of diabetes

INTRODUCTION: Hearing impairment is the most common sensory deficit in human beings. It affects more than 250 million people in the world. The consequences of hearing impairment include difficulty in interpret of speech, often producing a decreased ability to communicate, delay in language acquisition, educational and economic drawbacks, social isolation and stigmatization. It may turn bad along with by medical conditions such as hypothyroidism, diabetes, and hyperlipidemia, among others. AIM OF THE STUDY: 1. To Study the prevalence of Hearing loss and its association with Diabetes. 2. To assess the hearing loss in diabetics and correlate it with age and duration of diabetes. TERIALS & METHODS: This is a cross-sectional study in which evaluation of 200 patients who were diagnosed with diabetes mellitus undergoing treatment on Out–Patient or In-Patient basis in department of E.N.T and Endocrinology, in PSG Institute of Medical Science & Research, Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu from July 2012 to July 2014 were considered. History of every patient was taken in detail and importance was given on their presenting complaints. Any significant past history of ear discharge, hearing loss or previous ear surgeries were elicited. History of duration of diabetes and mode of treatment were given importance. All the patients were taken up for Otoscopic examination, in which the ear canal and status of tympanic membrane were assessed. Inclusion Criteria for cases considered in the study: 1. Known cases of Diabetes mellitus. 2. Age-group > 30 years to < 60 years. 3. Both genders. RESULTS: In this study, analysis of 200 patients diagnosed with diabetes mellitus was done in the Department of E.N.T, PSG Institute of Medical Sciences & Research from July 2012 to July 2014 to determine the incidence of hearing loss as a complication of diabetes mellitus. Detailed evaluation of each case was done comprising of the history, clinical examination including otoscopic examination with otoscope and pure tone audiometry. The ...