This site is intended for healthcare professionals

Go to /sign-in page

You can view 5 more pages before signing in

Drugs causing ototoxicity

Last reviewed dd mmm yyyy. Last edited dd mmm yyyy

Authoring team

Certain drugs may interfere with the normal mechanisms of hearing or balance, some irreversibly. Often, the first indication of ototoxicity is tinnitus, followed by gradual sensorineural hearing loss, or vertigo, or both.

The most commonly used ototoxic drugs are the aminoglycosides.

In general, wherever possible, non-ototoxic alternatives should be sought. Otherwise, monitor closely serum levels, and perform serial audiography. Avoid possible ototoxic synergism for example, an aminoglycoside and loop diuretic.

You should be especially wary of the risk of ototoxicity if:

  • excretion is impaired due to renal disease
  • the patient is bedbound in which case, vestibular effects will not be apparent until the patient finally tries to stand up

Related pages

Create an account to add page annotations

Annotations allow you to add information to this page that would be handy to have on hand during a consultation. E.g. a website or number. This information will always show when you visit this page.