Taking painkillers regularly? You might face hearing problems

People say painkillers are dangerous and cause lot of side effects. Well, it is true. If you are someone consuming over-the-counter painkillers, such as ibuprofen, acetaminophen or aspirin, then you may be at risk of hearing loss.

A 45-year-old bank executive, Gaurav Upreti experienced hearing loss after taking painkillers for a brief ailment in 2016. Later, he had to face permanent hearing loss. It is then he underwent bilateral cochlear implantation on the advice of doctors.

“Upreti’s is a classic example where the use of painkillers led to hearing loss. Excess drug abuse, use of painkillers, patients on dialysis, or anti-cancer drugs, persistent noise pollution are high-risk factors of losing the hearing ability if not addressed timely,” said Sumit Mrig, Principal Consultant and Head ENT, Max Smart Super Speciality Hospital, who conducted the surgery.

He added, “Sometimes, patients reach a stage when no hearing aids help them and then only cochlear implants are the solution. The message is that one should not rely on over-the-counter pain relievers that may cause hearing loss.”