Clinical Utilisation of High-frequency DPOAEs

Area of Science:

• Audiology
• Ototoxicology
• Gerontology

Background:

• Physiological changes in the auditory periphery due to age and ototoxicity are initially evident and most prominent at frequencies above 8kHz.
• High-frequency hearing assessment (above 8kHz) is not yet commonplace despite its established value.
• Changes at high frequencies precede those at conventional audiometric frequencies.

Purpose of the Study:

• To highlight the significance of assessing auditory function at frequencies above 8kHz.
• To emphasize the early detection of age-related and ototoxic cochlear damage.
• To discuss the utility of high-frequency hearing assessment in specific clinical contexts.

Main Methods:

• Review of existing literature on high-frequency hearing assessment (above 8kHz).
• Analysis of studies monitoring auditory function in patients undergoing chemotherapy.
• Examination of research on age-related hearing changes and noise-induced hearing loss.

Main Results:

• Ototoxic changes in hearing thresholds between 10-14kHz are consistently documented before lower-frequency changes in chemotherapy patients.
• Age-related hearing changes also appear at frequencies above 8kHz prior to observable changes at regular audiometric frequencies.
• The sensitivity of high-frequency thresholds to noise-induced hearing loss is debated but shows potential.

Conclusions:

• High-frequency hearing assessment (above 8kHz) is crucial for early detection of cochlear damage.
• This assessment is particularly valuable for monitoring ototoxicity and age-related hearing decline.
• Further research is warranted to clarify the role of high-frequency hearing in noise-induced hearing loss detection.