Common painkillers 'increase risk of hearing loss'

Regular use of common painkillers like aspirin and paracetamol can significantly increase the risk of hearing loss, according to a new study.

Millions are thought to take aspirin every day in the hope of warding off a heart attack, because of its blood thinning properties.

Men below 60 were a third more likely to have hearing problems if they regularly took aspirin, the study found.

However there was no greater risk in those over 60, the findings suggest.

For paracetamol users the risks were even higher.

For those under 50 the chance of hearing loss was effectively doubled, while those in their 50s were 38 per cent more likely to suffer problems.

The risk, however, continued to fall as volunteers got older.

Those aged 60 and over were 16pc more likely to have difficulty hearing than those of a similar age who did not regularly take the drug.

For the class of Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), which include Ibuprofen, they were found to increase the risk by 61pc for the under 50s, 32pc for those in their 50s and 16pc for those aged 60 and over.

The findings, by researchers from Harvard University Brigham and Women's Hospital, Vanderbilt University and the Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary, Boston are published in the American Journal of Medicine.

Experts warn that even mild hearing problems can lead to social isolation, depression and poorer quality of life.

Previous studies have shown that regular use of aspirin can lead to hearing problems.

However, the researchers say that paracetamol and NSAIDS were not considered to cause hearing problems.

They warn that the effects of the drugs is an important public health issue.

The study followed 26,000 men every 2 years for 18 years.

The volunteers were all given questionnaires determining how often they took the drugs, the extent of the hearing loss that they had suffered and a variety of other physiological, medical and social factors.

Regular use was defined as taking the drugs at least twice a week.

Dr Sharon Curhan, from the Department of Medicine at Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston, one of the authors of the study, said:: "Regular use of (these drugs) might increase the risk of adult hearing loss, particularly in younger individuals.

“Given the high prevalence of regular analgesic use and health and social implications of hearing impairment, this represents an important public health issue."