Vicodin and Hearing Loss - Deafness Side Effects

Hearing loss can be either sudden or progressive; it is defined as a full or partial decrease in the ability to detect high and low tones of sound. The age of the onset of hearing loss can range from pre-natal to advanced age. Although there are numerous causes of hearing impairment, only recently has the connection of the opiate medication Vicodin been associated with hearing loss.

It has long been known that some types of medications can cause partial or full hearing loss e.g. antibiotics, gentamicin, aspirin, non-steroidal pain medication and diuretics. Vicodin and hearing loss came to the forefront of medical news when radio talk show host Rush Limbaugh's hearing loss was thought to be caused, in part, by his heavy use and addiction to Vicodin and OxyContin, both drugs of the opiate class.

Ask any family practice physician this question, and you are likely to receive a puzzled look and the answer, "I'm not sure." In fact, no one really knows how hearing loss and Vicodin are related. It is known that they are related, but still unknown as to why they are related.

A physician who prescribes Vicodin for a patient on a long-term basis will caution him/her about the unexplained link between Vicodin and hearing loss and tell the patient that if he/she notices any change in hearing function to seek medical follow-up immediately, but not to discontinue the drug without medical supervision due to the withdrawal syndrome.

How is Vicodin Related to Hearing Loss?
Vicodin is a synthetic narcotic drug of the opiate class, used to treat acute or chronic severe pain. It is not a direct derivative of opium as morphine and codeine are; Vicodin and other synthetic opiates are made in a laboratory rather than by nature i.e. the opium poppy flower. Vicodin is not the only opiate drug that is associated with hearing loss; this side effect has been noted with use of Darvocet and OxyContin, both of which are also synthetic opiates.

Medical research concerning Vicodin and hearing loss indicates some preliminary findings that long-term use of morphine and codeine, the "natural" opiates, do not appear to cause hearing dysfunction. Complicating the research into this phenomenon is the fact that other synthetic opiates like Fentanyl and Methadone have not been linked to hearing loss at all – yet!

If Vicodin is sometimes related to hearing loss, then why do physicians continue to prescribe it? First, this is a rare complication, not a frequent side effect of Vicodin. Second, short-term use of Vicodin for severe pain has not been linked to hearing loss. Finally, every chronic pain patient's body chemistry is different; for one person, Fentanyl or morphine may not provide effective pain relief, but Vicodin will.

Opiates, whether natural or synthetic, are extremely addictive. They are used for short-term severe pain such as surgical pain or tooth extractions; under these conditions, there is no danger of addiction. However, when the opiates are used for chronic long-term pain such as that suffered by cancer patients, the terminally ill, and patients with intractable back pain, it matters little if the patient becomes addicted to the medication. If Vicodin causes hearing loss in these patients, this is an acceptable risk preferable to agonizing pain.

Eventually the mystery of why some, but not all, opiate drugs like Vicodin cause hearing loss will be solved. Until then, physicians continue to use Vicodin with caution, and only on a short-term basis.

Next article: Mild Hearing Loss – Severity Test and Denial