Vol. 8, Issue 4 (2019)

Patients and Methods: Sixty-two diabetic patients below the age of 16 attending AL- Salam Teaching Hospital, Mosul, Iraq from May 2017 to June 2018 were evaluated and compared with equal number (same gender &age) of non-diabetic controls. Pure-tone audiometric tests were performed. Both air and bone conduction were tested at frequencies between 250-8000 Hz.

Results: The hearing level was lower in diabetic children than in the control group in all tested frequencies, but the differences was statistically significant only at mid and high frequencies. The hearing loss was bilateral, symmetrical and affects both sexes. HbA1c concentration, age of diabetes and microangiopathic complications showed positive association with the elevated hearing thresholds, while, age at disease onset, dose of insulin, number of hypoglycemic and DKA episodes and presence of neuropathy were not.

Conclusions: Hearing impairment may occurs early in diabetic children and is related to the disease duration and the stage of metabolic control. Careful & accurate glycemic control help prevent or delay this complication.