title: Audiometric characteristics in patients with noise-induced hearing loss after sodium enoxaparin treatment.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of sodium enoxaparin treatment on patients with noise-induced hearing loss.
  
  
  METHODS
  Sixty patients with noise-induced hearing loss were included and randomly divided into two numerically equal groups. Group A underwent therapy with sodium enoxaparin for 10 days, followed by an additional 10 days of treatment after 10 days of no treatment. Group B received placebo as a control. Before treatment, at the end of treatment, and 2 months after the end of treatment, all patients underwent evaluation by laboratory tests, pure tone audiometry, transient evoked otoacoustic emissions (TEOAEs) testing, distortion product otoacoustic emissions (DPOAEs) testing, and auditory brain stem response testing.
  
  
  RESULTS
  In contrast to group B, at the end of the treatment in group A pure tone audiometry showed a significant (p < 0.05) improvement of the audiometric thresholds at 0.5, 1, 2, 4, and 8 kHz. Depending on the air and bone conduction thresholds, TEOAEs and DPOAEs, which had previously been absent, were evoked at the frequencies examined. These improvements were confirmed at last follow-up. We found no significant differences in auditory brain stem responses or laboratory results.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  These preliminary data encourage further studies to collect additional evidence on the effect of sodium enoxaparin in preventing the development of noise-induced hearing loss.
authors.affiliation: From the Department of Otorhinolaryngology, University of Genoa, Genoa, Italy.
authors.forename: Renzo
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Mora
authors.forename: Enzo
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Mora
authors.forename: Francesco Antonio
authors.initials: FA
authors.lastname: Salzano
authors.forename: Luca
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Guastini
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001301:Audiometry, Pure-Tone; D001844:Bone Conduction; D017984:Enoxaparin / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D005072:Evoked Potentials, Auditory; D016057:Evoked Potentials, Auditory, Brain Stem; D006317:Hearing Loss, Noise-Induced / Q000188:drug therapy*; D006801:Humans; D008875:Middle Aged; D018696:Neuroprotective Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D017084:Otoacoustic Emissions, Spontaneous
chemical_list: D017984:Enoxaparin; D018696:Neuroprotective Agents