Acoustics reflex decay in patients with type 1 diabetes mellitus

Abstract

Introduction: Various studies try to explain the association between diabetes mellitus (DM) and impaired hearing, relating it to the time of evolution, metabolic control, among others, finding mixed results. The parameter under investigation is the acoustic reflex decay (ARD). Aim: To characterize the ARD in patients with type 1 DM. Also relate the ARD with time of evolution of the disease, metabolic control and age. Material and method: Cross-sectional descriptive correlational study. 92 ears were eva- luated in 50 0Hz and 99 ears in 1000 Hz, with ages between 4 and 68 years, of both genders, with a time of evolution of the disease from one month to 44 years. Frequency analysis of the ARD were performed and nonparametric statistics by Spearman’s Rho coefficient. Results: In both frequencies most ears do not have ARD, while 2.2% in 500 Hz and 3.0% in 1000 Hz showed ARD pathological features. No correlation exists between the ARD with time of evolution of the disease, metabolic control and age of subjects. Conclusion: There is a low percentage of ARD pathological and lack of correlation with disease characteristics, coinciding with other studies that have used differents assessment tools.