<p>Hearing status in patients with vitiligo</p>

Abstract

Background: Vitiligo is an acquired disorder characterized by depigmented macules and patches that result from a progressive loss of functional melanocytes. During embryogenesis, precursor cells of melanocytes (melanoblasts) migrate not only to the epidermis and hair follicles but also to the leptomeninges, uveal tract of the eye, and inner ear. Thus, it has been proposed that these organs may be involved in vitiligo, as well. Objective: This study was designed to evaluate the frequency and characteristics of hearing loss by means of audiometry and distortion product otoaucostic emission (DPOAE) in patients with vitiligo. Methods: Fifty-three patients with vitiligo and 52 age- and sex-matched healthy subjects were enrolled in this case–control study. After a complete otological examination, comprehensive audiological evaluations including pure tone audiometry (PTA) and DPOAE were performed for all participants and the results were compared between the two groups. Results: Neither PTA nor DPOAE showed significant difference between the two groups in any of the evaluated frequencies (0.75–8 KHz). Furthermore, in patient group, there was no association between PTA/DPOAE and age, gender, duration of the disease, presence of halo nevus, type of vitiligo, extent of involvement, and positive family history of vitiligo. Conclusion: Vitiligo patients have normal hearing status.

Investigation of hearing and outer hair cell function of the cochlea in patients with vitiligo

“…Considering that melanin pigment protects the inner ear against oxidative stress, ototoxic drugs, and high noise exposure, the inability to cope with prolonged stress might explain the relationship between disease duration and hearing loss. However, other studies have found no significant relationship between disease duration and hypoacusis 9,11,18 . Variation among studies in mean disease duration may be a factor affecting these results.…”

“…Studies assessing hearing in vitiligo patients by conventional audiometry have yielded conflicting results. Some studies have found no significant relationship between vitiligo and hearing loss 10,11 . AlGhamdi et al 10 attributed this to the lower average age of the patients in their study group (mean, 23.21 years) compared with other studies.…”

“…Studies in which hearing was evaluated by conventional audiometry tests have yielded contradictory results, but many studies in which cochlear function was evaluated by an otoacoustic emission test reported that cochlear damage was significantly greater in vitiligo patients 4,8,19 . However, Rahimi et al 11 did not detect significant hearing loss in vitiligo patients compared with the control group in both the audiometry test and the DPOAE test. They stated that hearing loss from metabolic diseases was not excluded in other studies, and hearing loss could have causes other than vitiligo.…”

“…Studies of the effect of vitiligo on hearing loss have shown inconsistent results. Some studies have reported that hearing is negatively affected in vitiligo patients, 5,8,9 whereas other studies 10,11 indicate that hearing is not affected. It is not clear exactly which disease parameters are responsible for melanocyte damage in the inner ear in vitiligo patients.…”

Vitiligo Treated by Soaking in an Earth Pond Containing KELEA Activated Water

“…The produced melanin is further distributed to neighboring keratinocytes and to hair follicles. Melanin is also present in other body sites, including the eye, inner ear, meninges, and the substantia nigra in the brain [10][11][12][13][14] . Vitiligo occurs because of the marked reduction of melanocytes in affected skin areas.…”