Does noise act synergistically with drugs on hearing? Are there other kinds of synergistic effects?
There is some evidence in the literature which suggests that ototoxic drugs such as kanamycin, and a class of antibiotics known as aminoglycosides may cause more severe damage to the ear when treatment with these drugs occurs concurrent with noise exposure. (21) However, only little research has been done in this area, and the data are limited to animals. Continuous noise may also interact with impulse noise and body vibrations to exacerbate hearing loss, although the magnitude of this effect is not exactly known. What factors protect the ear against noise-induced hearing loss? There are several factors which can mitigate the risk of noise-induced hearing loss. The acoustic reflex (tightening of the ossicular chain due to contraction of the muscles in the middle ear in response to high level sound) protects hearing from noise exposure to a very limited degree. The use of hearing protection such as earplugs or earmuffs reduces the risk of hearing damage from noise. Avoidance of noisy ar
