by Neil Bauman, Ph.D.
Until the mid 1990s, Acetaminophen (known as Paracetamol in Europe) was not thought to be ototoxic at all. Thus in the second edition of my book, “Ototoxic Drugs Exposed” I do not even mention Acetaminophen.
All that has changed. New research has revealed that rather than not being ototoxic at all, Acetaminophen (Tylenol) is actually quite ototoxic.
Thus people who take high doses of Vicodin (a combination of Acetaminophen and Hydrocodone) for a number of months can develop almost total hearing loss.
Since Acetaminophen was “not ototoxic”, I assumed that it was the Hydrocodone that caused the massive hearing losses being reported. Not so according to research conducted at the House Ear Institute. They found, to their surprise, that it was the Acetaminophen that was ototoxic and not the Hydrocodone.
You see, in high doses, Acetaminophen kills the liver, thus you die before massive hearing loss has a chance to develop. However, the researchers found that when taking Hydrocodone with Acetaminophen, somehow the Hydrocodone protected the liver. Thus you lived to tell the tale, but massive hearing loss could be a result.
Now, another study, reported in the American Journal of Medicine (Vol. 123, Issue 3, March, 2010), reveals that even just taking low doses of Acetaminophen over several years results in increased risk of hearing loss.
For example, in a study of 26,917 men between the ages of 40 and 75 at the beginning of the study, men that used Acetaminophen at least twice a week had a 22% increased risk of hearing loss. However, when only men under the age of 50 were considered, the increased risk factor skyrocketed to 99%.
This reveals that Acetaminophen, when taken regularly over as few as 1 to 4 years can slowly and insidiously destroy your hearing without your even being aware of it. You have been warned.
To learn which drugs are (or can be) ototoxic, see “Ototoxic Drugs Exposed“. This book contains information on the ototoxicity of 877 drugs, 35 herbs and 148 chemicals.
I’ve suffered from awful nasal congestion and muffled stuffed ear for over a year. A CAT scan and nasal probe – nasal rinses with steroids. Nothing is showing up ( like polys) some hearing loss but not a problem. Extensive Hearing tests show nothing indicative of neuroma or anything like that. To get to the point:
Nothing works but when I took myself OFF of TYLENOL it seems as though things are getting better —- the plugged ear feeling much better— as well as the inflammed nose duscomfort- too soon to make a conclusion but I’m changing nothing else in diet or meds will stay in touch if I’m still getting better in a werk
Hi Barbara:
It could well be that the acetaminophen is causing your ear problems and going off it will help your ears return to normal or closer to normal.
Cordially,
Neil
How long does it take for the ear ringing to stop after taking tylenol. I have stopped taking it for a couple days now.
Hi Diane:
There is no set time. In varies from person to person. As a rule of thumb, I say give it two weeks, but it can take longer (or shorter). If you still have the tinnitus after 2 months and unless it is slowly fading away, you tinnitus may prove to be permanent. If that is the case, don’t despair. You can then learn how to successfully deal with your tinnitus.
Cordially,
Neil
Hi Diane:
How are your ears doing now. Did your tinnitus go away in the past month?
Cordially,
Neil
Dear Dr Mr. Baumann,
i had a really mild tinnitus since a weekago, i underwent an eye surgery wich had a very painful after surgery recovery and for the first day and a half i took 1000 mg of acetaminophen ( paracetamol) every 6 hours because i was literally screaming from pain. I stopped at 12 am the last dose for a total of 5 pills every 6 hours and the following day around 4 pm the tinnitus started ringing louder than ever. Is it likely that i have caused a perament tinnitus now? i’m literally scared and feel guilty for taking it knowing it was not the best for my ears even if the eyedoctor told me it was the perfect medication for that type of after surgery pain. thank you for your kind reply
Hi Sofia:
Only time will tell whether your increased tinnitus will be permanent or not. I don’t have specific data on this. But you can be hopeful that it will drop in volume as the acetaminophen leaves your body. In any case you need to remain calm as anxiety causes tinnitus to become worse and persist. Treat your tinnitus as you do any other unimportant background sound and let it fade away.
Cordially,
Neil
I took 1000 mg of Tylenol every 6 hours for a week following surgery. I developed a sudden hearing loss during that week. I was diagnosed with sudden onset sensorineural hearing loss. Could the Tylenol have caused this? I have since stopped and my hearing seems to be improving.
Hi Patti:
Acetaminophen (Tylenol) is quite ototoxic to the ears when taken in high doses like you took. I’m not surprised you experienced hearing loss as a result. Actually, thousands of people have had the same experience.
Hopefully, your hearing will return–at least some of it, but there are no guarantees.
If you have to take Acetaminophen in the future, here is something to remember. It’s a quote from my book “Ototoxic Drugs Exposed”.
“Doctors have discovered that Acetaminophen depletes your body’s stores of glutathione, a powerful natural antioxidant that helps protect our hearing from the effects of free radicals that are produced when our ears are exposed to loud noise, to prescription drugs and to various chemicals. When glutathione levels are reduced, the free radicals floating around in the cochlea zap (kill) the hair cells, resulting in some degree of sensorineural hearing loss.
Since Acetaminophen depletes the body’s supply of glutathione, then it follows that taking glutathione at the same time as taking Acetaminophen (or many other drugs), helps protect your ears from any resulting hearing loss, not to mention preventing or reducing damage to your liver. Note: since glutathione is not easily absorbed through your stomach, a good alternative is to take N-acetyl-cysteine (NAC) (a major building block of glutathione) instead, and let your body convert it to glutathione.”
Cordially,
Neil