Ear drops that may cause hearing and balance problems (or even both) in dogs include those containing the following aminoglycoside antibiotics: Technically, all routes of administration may cause ototoxic side effects. These drugs are often used to treat different types of bacterial infections and they are mostly administered by injection or topically, directly into the ear under ear drops and ointments.
Several ear drops containing aminoglycoside antibiotics can be ototoxic in both humans and pets.
What is otomax for dogs manual#
“High frequencies are affected first, slowing recognition of the toxicity, which may appear at a delay of weeks after treatment has been discontinued.” ~ Merck Veterinary Manual When hearing loss takes place, the signs may not be noticeable at first as the dog’s ability to sense high frequencies is firstly affected, therefore the first signs of hearing loss may become only more noticeable perhaps weeks after treatment. While hearing problems may not be too noticeable, balance problems are known for causing trouble walking, circling, eye jerking movements, tilted head, nausea and vomiting. When these hair cells are damaged, they no longer work as they’re supposed to, thus, communication is broken and the dog may no longer hear well and his balance function may be affected.
When a dog normally hears and moves around, the special hair cells located in the dog’s cochlea and the vestibular areas of the inner ear, bend with sound vibrations and movements, thus, relaying information about sounds and movement to the dog’s brain. The drug’s ototoxic effect may be temporary (and thus reversible as the drug leaves the body) or permanent. Ototoxicity therefore may cause a dog’s hearing and sense of balance to be negatively affected. When the vestibular-coclear nerve is instead affected causing balance problems, it’s known as vestibulotoxicity. Learning more about these ear drops and potential side effects is important so to recognize early signs of trouble and readily report them to the vet.Īs seen in the introduction, the term ototoxicity simply means “toxic to the ear.” How can ears drops be toxic to a dog’s ear? While the process is still not completely well understood, it’s likely a matter of the drugs causing damage to the hair cells in the dog’s inner ear or damage to the nerves responsible for sending a dog’s hearing and balancing information from the dog’s inner ear to his brain.ĭepending on what part of the ear is affected, the ototoxicity may be referred to in different ways. When the coclea (the hearing apparatus) is affected causing hearing loss, it’s referred to as cochleotoxicity. There are certain ear medications that are known for being “ototoxic” which means that they are toxic to the ear and can negatively affect a dog or person’s sense of hearing. It may sound quite ironic and surprising that the same ear drops purposely crafted to help a dog recover from an ear ailment, would cause a dog to go deaf, but the risks are real for certain dogs.