Doctor’s perspective Medications are meant to prevent and cure diseases, and to strengthen the body, but in fact, they can be extremely harmful to the human body due to improper use, and some of them can cause drug deafness, causing many people to live in a silent world for life. Drug deafness is difficult to cure. It is not uncommon to see cases of drug deafness in outpatient clinics. The hair cells are the end receptors of the auditory nerve. Under normal circumstances, they convert sound energy into bioelectric impulses that are transmitted to the auditory nerve and fed to the brain center so that people can hear all kinds of sounds from the outside world. Ototoxic drugs specifically damage the hair cells, making it impossible for people to feel the outside world. This kind of deafness belongs to the “sensorineural deafness”, “this kind of drug deafness is irreversible.” Currently, there are 20,000-30,000 deaf babies born in China every year, 50% of which are caused by genetic factors. Drug deafness is the main cause of congenital deafness in newborns and acquired deafness in adults. It is important to pay attention to excessive quietness after medication Drug-induced deafness mainly manifests as chronic poisoning of the auditory system, with deafness and tinnitus as the main cause. The deafness mostly appears 1~2 weeks after medication. For children, the early symptoms are not easy to recognize, starting with no pain, no itching, neither redness nor pus in the external ear canal, and the child does not cry or fuss, but becomes quiet, which has a great concealment, and sometimes the child becomes mute, and the parents do not know it is caused by deafness. Drug-related deafness in children is often bilateral and permanent damage. Especially in young children, because they do not know how to speak or express themselves accurately, by the time parents find out, their language development is already impaired, causing not only deafness but also deafness, which makes the time for treatment late. The mother’s damage can be passed on to her offspring There are more than 60 kinds of medications that can cause deafness. The main drugs are aminoglycoside antimicrobials such as streptomycin and gentamicin. Some drugs have a clear family susceptibility, and the dose is so disproportionate to the degree of intoxication that a small amount of the drug can lead to irreversible and severe deafness. In addition, drug-related deafness is closely related to the total amount of medication and the length of treatment. Intravenous administration is more hazardous, intramuscular administration and surface administration after skin damage, and oral administration is relatively safe. The chances of damage occurring are increased when two or more ototoxic drugs are applied in combination. Clinical observations have shown that some drugs can be secreted from the mother’s breast milk, damaging the infant’s auditory nerve and causing deafness. There are also drugs that can enter the fetus through the placenta and cause congenital deafness. Tips: 5 Tips to Prevent Deafness 1. If there are deaf people in the mother’s family who are deaf to a certain drug, their offspring are absolutely prohibited from taking such drugs. 2, children avoid the casual use of ototoxic antibiotics such as aminoglycosides, must be used, the dose should be small, the course of treatment should be short, try not to intravenous administration, avoid the combination of drugs. 3, pay attention to the reaction after the use of drugs, such as dizziness, numbness of the corners of the mouth, tinnitus and deafness symptoms should be promptly discontinued. Use ototoxic drugs with caution for the elderly, children, the frail and the declining kidney function. Avoid simultaneous or sequential application of multiple drugs with ototoxic effects. Pregnant women should prohibit ototoxic drugs, as they have obvious toxic effects on the fetus. 4. During the period of antibiotics, take neurotrophic drugs such as vitamin B, vitamin C, vitamin A and chondroitin sulfate at the same time to promote the metabolism of sensory cells using various nutrients in order to protect the inner ear and prevent drug toxicity. In the early stage of mild poisoning, hearing can be restored. 5. Once signs of drug poisoning deafness are detected, medical treatment should be sought promptly. Vitamins, neurotrophic drugs and vasodilators can be chosen, and hormones can be added if necessary, and treatment can last for 2~3 months. At the same time, active hearing and speech training should be carried out to try to restore or improve the hearing of children with mild to moderate deafness and to minimize the harm. If the deafness has developed into severe, the child’s quality of life can be improved with the necessary medication, early hearing aid selection and strengthening of hearing and speech rehabilitation training.