The etiology of these cases has not been known until now.
We had 15 primary glaucoma patients for whom pure tone audiometry was performed, and could find the hearing defect in high tone in 5 cases (1/3 among those patients).
The audiometric curve was similar to that in the presbycusis, but severer in degree than that occurred within the normal physiological aging process. The average age was 62. 4 year in the group with the hearing defect, and 45. 6 year in the group without the hearing defect. There were no relationship between the hearing defect and intraocular tension, visual field change, glaucomatous cupping, and duration of glaucoma.
These results may support the opinion of the authors that the hearing disturbance in glaucomatous patients is related to the arteriosclerotic changes which aggravate the presbycusis, and not related to glaucoma itself.
On the other hand, however, it is still impossible for us to rule. out that the pleiotropic and multifactorial genetic factors may play as a common important role in the hearing disturbances and glaucoma. And further studies would be necessary for these problems.
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