Cochlear potentials of guinea pigs with experimentally induced renal failure

In order to investigate the relationship between renal failure and hearing loss, the authors made a guinea pig model with experimentally induced renal failure and examined cochlear potentials (N1, CM and EP). When renal damage was greater, the amplitudes of N1 and CM were decreased and the latency of N1 was prolonged, but EP was within normal range. The sensory cells of the cochlea were considered responsible for the hearing loss in the guinea pig model. No pathological alterations of the cochlea were revealed by a light microscopy. It is suggested that the etiology of the hearing loss was due mainly to metabolic disturbances such as uremic toxins, electrolyte imbalance or endocrine abnormalities.