Open AccessImplications of Sensorineural Hearing Loss With Hydrocodone/Acetaminophen Abuse
Author(s) -
Andrei Novac,
AnaMaria Iosif,
Regina Groysman,
Robert G. Bota
Publication year - 2015
Publication title -
primary care companion to cns disorders/the primary care companion for cns disorders
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
eISSN - 2155-7772
pISSN - 2155-7780
DOI - 10.4088/pcc.15br01809
Subject(s) - hydrocodone , medicine , hearing loss , multidisciplinary approach , chronic pain , acetaminophen , psychiatry , sensorineural hearing loss , audiology , oxycodone , opioid , anesthesia , social science , receptor , sociology
Sensorineural hearing loss is an infrequently recognized side effect of pain medication abuse. Chronic pain patients treated with opiates develop different degrees of tolerance to pain medications. In many cases, the tolerance becomes the gateway to a variety of cycles of overuse and unmasking of significant psychiatric morbidity and mortality. An individualized approach utilizing combined treatment modalities (including nonopiate pharmaceuticals) is expected to become the norm. Patients can now be provided with multidisciplinary care that addresses an individual's psychiatric, social, and medical needs, which requires close cooperation between physicians of varying specialties. This report describes a patient who experienced hearing loss from hydrocodone/acetaminophen abuse.