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Audiological findings in celiac disease
Hayriye Karabulut1, Samil Hizli, Muharrem Dagli
1Department of Otorhinolaryngology, MH Kecioren Training and Research Hospital, Ankara, Turkey. hayriyekarabulut@gmail.com
Insights
Celiac disease (CD) in children impacts hearing, causing higher auditory thresholds at 250 Hz. This condition also reduces otoacoustic emission amplitudes, indicating auditory system dysfunction.
Area of Science:
- Otolaryngology
- Pediatric Gastroenterology
- Immunology
Background:
- Celiac disease (CD) is an immune-mediated enteropathy triggered by gluten in genetically predisposed individuals.
- Extraintestinal manifestations of CD are increasingly recognized, suggesting broader systemic effects.
- The impact of CD on the auditory pathway, particularly the olivocochlear efferent system in children, requires further investigation.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the effects of celiac disease on the auditory pathway in children.
- To assess potential auditory system dysfunction, including the olivocochlear efferent system, in pediatric CD patients.
Main Methods:
- A cohort of 41 pediatric patients with celiac disease and 31 healthy controls underwent audiological evaluations.
- Evaluations included pure-tone audiometry, tympanometry, transiently evoked otoacoustic emissions (TEOAE), and distortion product otoacoustic emissions (DPOAE).
- Contralateral suppression of TEOAE was also assessed to evaluate the olivocochlear efferent system.
Main Results:
- Children with CD exhibited significantly higher auditory thresholds at 250 Hz compared to controls (p < 0.05).
- Signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) amplitudes in DPOAE and TEOAE (with and without contralateral acoustic stimulus) were significantly lower at 1,000 Hz in CD patients (p < 0.0001).
- No significant differences were observed in contralateral suppression amplitudes between the CD and control groups.
Conclusions:
- Celiac disease significantly affects the auditory system in children.
- Findings indicate elevated auditory thresholds at 250 Hz and reduced DPOAE and TEOAE amplitudes at 1,000 Hz in pediatric CD patients.
- These results highlight the importance of considering auditory health in the comprehensive management of celiac disease in children.
Objective:
Celiac disease (CD) is a gluten-triggered immune enteropathy caused by a genetic predisposition. Recent papers suggest that CD is increasingly recognized by extraintestinal findings. The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of CD on hearing pathway including the olivocochlear efferent system in children.
Methods:
Forty-one pediatric CD patients and 31 controls were included in the study. Both groups were evaluated with audiometry, tympanometry, transiently evoked otoacoustic emission (TEOAE), distortion product otoacoustic emission (DPOAE), and contralateral suppression of the TEOAE.
Results:
The threshold at 250 Hz of the patients with CD was significantly higher (p < 0.05 in CD compared to control group, p < 0.0001). The signal to noise ratio (SNR) amplitudes in DPOAE testing and the SNR amplitudes with and without contralateral acoustic stimulus in TEOAE testing were significantly lower at 1,000 Hz in the CD compared to the control group. There was no significant difference between the CD and the control group regarding contralateral suppression amplitudes.
Conclusion:
CD seems to have an important impact on the auditory system, and results in an elevation of the thresholds at 250 Hz on audiometry and a decrease in the amplitudes of DPOAE and linear TEOAE at 1,000 Hz in children.
