Vestibular and cochlear dysfunction in aging: Two sides of the same coin?

Objective: Nonspecific complaints of hearing loss, vertigo, imbalance, and instability, without a defined etiology, are very prevalent in the elderly population, with a great impact on morbidity and mortality in this age group. The objectives of this study were to verify whether there is age-related vestibular dysfunction and to test the association of vestibular dysfunction with presbycusis in the elderly population.

Methods: Original retrospective analytical cross-sectional study, carried out with 80 patients who underwent a videonystagmography and complete audiometric evaluation due to nonspecific vestibular complaints, without a specific vestibular disorder diagnosis. Patients were selected and divided into two distinct age groups (group A: >60 years; group B: 18-50 years) and, in both groups, we analyzed the caloric tests and the pure-tone audiometry.

Results: In the vestibular evaluation, we found that there was a statistically significant difference (P < 0.05) between groups in the prevalence of bilateral vestibular weakness (group A: 22.5%; group B: 5%), and that the increase in age, above 60 years, is negatively correlated with the mean total caloric response. Additionally, we obtained a reasonable negative and statistically significant correlation (r = -0.320, P < 0.05) between the mean bone conduction thresholds at high frequencies and total caloric responses in group A.

Conclusions: In patients with hearing loss, it is essential to perform a complete vestibular study to diagnose vestibular disorders and, consequently, prevent adverse outcomes that may result from these alterations.