Hearing and Cochlear Functioning in Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome (Pcos)

Abstract

Polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS), is a heterogeneous endocrine disorder, characterized by oligo-amenorrhea, hyperandrogenism and polycystic ovaries. The auditory abilities are affected in PCOS due to its features like insulin resistance, endothelial damage, cardiovascular problems, hormonal and biochemical variations, which leads to high frequency hearing loss in early stages of PCOS. Since the vascular diseases and endothelial dysfunction plays an important role in pathogenesis of hearing impairment in PCOS, it is important to determine cochlear functioning in patients with PCOS. The study aimed at determining the hearing and cochlear functioning in cases with PCOS using conventional and extended high frequency audiometry (EHFA) and distortion product otoacoustic emissions (DPOAE). Two group of participants in the age range of 18-25 years were included in the study. Group-1 included 15 women diagnosed with PCOS and Group-2 included 15 healthy women, with no evidence of PCOS. Conventional audiometry was carried out in the frequency range of 250 Hz-8000 Hz and EHFA was done from 9000 Hz-16000 Hz. DPOAEs were also recorded from 500 Hz -16000 Hz. Results showed that there was no significant difference in the thresholds between both the groups for conventional audiometry from 250 Hz- 8000 Hz (p > 0.05). But, the EHFA threshold was significantly poorer for PCOS group than the control group. Results of DPOAE showed no statistically significant difference (p > 0.05) at all the frequencies between the PCOS and control group. The study highlights the importance of early identification of hearing loss in the PCOS group, through extended high frequency screening'