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Association of hearing loss with total and cause-specific mortality in US adults

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Abstract

We expected to explore the associations of hearing loss and hearing thresholds at different frequencies with total and cause-specific mortality. In this study, 11,732 individuals derived from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) 1999–2012 were included. Data of death was extracted from the NHANES Public-Use Linked Mortality File through December 31, 2015. Cox proportional hazards models were used to explore the associations between hearing loss, hearing thresholds at different frequencies, and total or cause-specific mortality. A total of 1,253 deaths occurred with a median follow-up of 12.15 years. A significant positive dose-response relationship between hearing loss in speech frequency and total mortality was observed, and the HRs and 95% CIs were 1.16 (0.91, 1.47), 1.54 (1.19, 2.00), and 1.85 (1.36, 2.50), respectively, for mild, moderate, and severe speech-frequency hearing loss (SFHL) with a P trend of 0.0003. In addition, moderate (HR: 1.90, 95% CI: 1.20–3.00) and greater (3.50, 1.38–8.86) SFHL significantly elevated risk of heart disease mortality. Moreover, hearing thresholds of >25 dB at 500, 1000, or 2000 Hz were significantly associated with elevated mortality from all causes (1.40, 1.17–1.68; 1.44, 1.20–1.73; and 1.33, 1.10–1.62, respectively) and heart disease (1.89, 1.08–3.34; 1.95, 1.21–3.16; and 1.89, 1.16–3.09, respectively). Hearing loss is associated with increased risks of total mortality and heart disease mortality, especially for hearing loss at speech frequency. Preventing or inhibiting the pathogenic factors of hearing loss is important for reducing the risk of death.

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Funding

The study was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (81903291). The funder did not play any role in study design; in the collection, analysis, and interpretation of data; in the writing of the report; nor in the preparation, review, or approval of the manuscript.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Occupational & Environmental Health, School of Public Health, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, 430030, Hubei, China

    Xiaobing Feng, Man Cheng, Weihong Qiu, Ruyi Liang, Minjing Li, Weihong Chen & Dongming Wang

  2. Key Laboratory of Environment and Health, Ministry of Education & Ministry of Environmental Protection, and State Key Laboratory of Environmental Health (Incubating), School of Public Health, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, 430030, Hubei, China

    Xiaobing Feng, Man Cheng, Weihong Qiu, Ruyi Liang, Minjing Li, Weihong Chen & Dongming Wang

  3. Department of Social Medicine and Health Management, School of Public Health, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, 430030, Hubei, China

    Wenzhen Li

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  1. Xiaobing Feng
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Contributions

XF, WC, and DW designed research. XF and DW conducted research, analyzed data, and wrote the paper. WL, MC, WQ, RL, ML, and WC contributed to the acquisition, analysis, or interpretation of the data and revised the manuscript for important intellectual content. DW and WC have primary responsibility for final content and is the study guarantor. All authors read and approved the final manuscript. The corresponding author attests that all listed authors meet authorship criteria and that no others meeting the criteria have been omitted.

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Correspondence to Weihong Chen or Dongming Wang.

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The National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey protocol was approved by the National Center for Health Statistics Ethics Review Board, and written informed consent was obtained from all participants.

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The authors declare no competing interests.

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Responsible Editor: Lotfi Aleya

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Feng, ., Li, W., Cheng, M. et al. Association of hearing loss with total and cause-specific mortality in US adults. Environ Sci Pollut Res 29, 5032–5042 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-021-16038-z

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-021-16038-z

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