Hearing function after betahistine therapy in patients with Ménière's disease

ABSTRACT INTRODUCTION: Preventing or reversing hearing loss is challenging in Ménière's disease. Betahistine, as a histamine agonist, has been tried in controlling vertigo in patients with Ménière's disease, but its effectiveness on hearing problems is not known. OBJECTIVE: To examine the effect of betahistine on hearing function in not-previously-treated patients with Ménière's disease and to define possible contributors in this regard. METHODS: A total of 200 not-previously-treated patients with definite unilateral Ménière's disease received betahistine by mouth (initial dose, 16 mg three times a day; maintenance dose, 24-48 mg daily in divided doses). Changes in indicators of hearing status before and six months after treatment were documented. Hearing loss was considered as the mean hearing level >25 dB HL at five frequencies. RESULTS: The mean duration of disease was 3.37 years. Six months after treatment the mean hearing level decreased by 6.35 dB compared to that at the baseline (p