Analysis of distortion and reflection components of otoacoustic emissions from schoolchildren exposed to secondhand smoke

• Grant number: 20/06444-1
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Scientific Initiation
• Start date: October 01, 2020
• End date: December 31, 2021
• Field of knowledge: Health Sciences - Speech Therapy
• Principal Investigator: Alessandra Spada Durante
• Grantee: Isabela Tavian Pereira Marques
• Host Institution: Faculdade de Ciências Médicas da Santa Casa de São Paulo (FCMSCSP). Fundação Arnaldo Vieira de Carvalho. São Paulo , SP, Brazil

Abstract

: The act of smoking bring a lot health damage for both active and secondhand smokes being the emphasis, of this study the damage to the auditory system of secondhand smokers. In the literature, there are several studies that highlight smoke as a risk factor for developing hearing loss, because the carbon monoxide contained in a cigarette's smoke produces an ototoxic effect that affects the functioning of the auditory system, specifically the functioning of the outer hair cells. One method for detecting hearing disorders of cochlear origin is through otoacustic emissions. For a more specific clinical application, there are the DPOAE. These emissions have two important components in the answer: one generated by a distortion and the other generated by reflection. A study previously realized by Rao and Long (2011), investigated the effect of aspirin on the DPOAE components and demonstrated that the reflection component is more vulnerable to ototoxic effects. However, there are not studies in the literature that demonstrate the effect of smoke on DPOAE components. So, this study has the intention to investigate the cochlear function by analyzing the behavior of the components: reflection and distortion of DPOAE, in a group of students exposed to secondhand smoke. The hypothesis of this study is that the reflection component reveals more clearly the impact of secondhand smoke on exposed children.