Can deferoxamine be considered an ototoxic drug?

Some uncertainty about deferoxamine ototoxicity is to be found in the literature. Therefore, 100 patients affected by beta-thalassemia were checked audiologically. Twelve of them showed a sensorineural hearing impairment which in most cases was confined to 4 and 8 kHz. If these results are compared with a sample of "normal" population, no significant difference can be observed, therefore excluding that deferoxamine, at least at present dosages, may be considered as a certain cause of cochlear impairment.