Effects of tibolone on auditory brainstem responses in postmenopausal women--a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the influence of tibolone, a synthetic steroid, in modifying auditory brainstem response (ABR) in postmenopausal women. DESIGN: Prospective, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial. SETTING: Outpatient menopausal clinic in a university hospital. PATIENT(S): Twenty-four healthy postmenopausal women. INTERVENTION(S): Administration of either tibolone or placebo for 12 weeks; evaluation of ABR and hormone levels before and after treatment. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE(S): Changes in auditory brainstem response latencies. RESULT(S): Comparison of the ABR latency data from the two treatment groups showed a significant decrease in wave II, III, and V peak latencies in women receiving tibolone. No significant differences in pretreatment and posttreatment circulating hormone concentrations were observed between the tibolone and placebo group. Furthermore, there was no significant increase in hormone levels in either of the groups at 12 weeks. CONCLUSION(S): Our findings show an improvement in auditory function via brainstem auditory neural pathways sensitive to tibolone in postmenopausal women. Tibolone may offer new therapeutic strategies in otologic disorders.