Khoza Katijah, Ross Eleanor
Department of Speech Pathology and Audiology, University of the Witwatersrand.
S Afr J Commun Disord. 2002;49:17-27.
Numerous international studies have demonstrated a relationship between HIV/AIDS and auditory function. The aim of this study was to explore this relationship in a group of adults infected with HIV/AIDS attending an outpatient clinic in a hospital located in Gauteng, South Africa. The prevalence of hearing loss; the type, degree and configuration of the hearing loss; the relationship between the hearing symptoms and the progressive stages of the disease, and the type of onset of hearing problems were examined. The results of the study indicated a prevalence rate of hearing loss which was as high as 23% in the sample surveyed. The types of hearing loss included conductive and sensorineural, while the degree of severity ranged from slight to profound in nature. The configuration of the hearing loss was not frequency-range-specific, and the degree of severity did not seem to worsen with the progression of the HIV/AIDS disease. However, there did seem to be an increase in the occurrence of sensorineural hearing loss with the deterioration of patients' immunological status. Analysis of patients' audiological results along with their case history data suggested that their hearing loss may have been caused by opportunistic infections and/or their treatments. These results are discussed in terms of their implications for the clinical management of patients with HIV/AIDS; education of team members; and policy formulation.
众多国际研究已证实了艾滋病毒/艾滋病与听觉功能之间的关系。本研究的目的是在南非豪登省一家医院的门诊就诊的一组感染艾滋病毒/艾滋病的成年人中探究这种关系。研究了听力损失的患病率；听力损失的类型、程度和形态；听力症状与疾病进展阶段之间的关系，以及听力问题的发病类型。研究结果表明，在所调查的样本中，听力损失的患病率高达23%。听力损失的类型包括传导性和感音神经性，而严重程度从轻度到重度不等。听力损失的形态并非特定于频率范围，而且严重程度似乎并未随着艾滋病毒/艾滋病病情的进展而加重。然而，随着患者免疫状态的恶化，感音神经性听力损失的发生率似乎确实有所增加。对患者听力测试结果及其病历数据的分析表明，他们的听力损失可能是由机会性感染和/或其治疗引起的。将根据这些结果对艾滋病毒/艾滋病患者的临床管理、团队成员教育和政策制定的影响进行讨论。
