Higher hearing threshold associated with increased mortality in men, suggests study

A new study published in the journal of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery suggested that for men the hearing threshold is linked to both acute cardiovascular death and overall mortality, however, no similar relationship was observed for women.

In otolaryngology, dizziness, hearing loss, and imbalance are common symptoms that afflict people of all ages and account for around 10% of clinic visits. In addition to this, hearing loss is the third most common reason for years spent disabled throughout the globe. Research on both humans and animals found how important sex hormones are for hearing function. The female sex hormones may protect against noise, and in pre-menopausal women, the objective hearing levels vary over the menstrual cycle and then diminish after menopause. There is a knowledge gap on the relationship between hearing and long-term survival among younger women and men. Therefore, Jan Berge and team carried forward this study in order to examine the effects of postural balance on the relationship between hearing and sex-specific overall mortality as well as death from acute cardiovascular disease.

The patients received conventional clinical examinations as well as audiometric and stabilometric laboratory examinations. On the best hearing ear, a pure tone average of 0.5, 1, 2, and 3 kHz was determined. The Norwegian Cause of Death Registry provided the cause of death. This study was set out for a duration of 26.3 years and included a total of 1,036 patients, of whom 58.8% were women. A 10 dB rise in hearing threshold was linked to a 14% increase in mortality among males in Cox regression analysis for the overall mortality adjusted for age, prior medical history, and vestibular condition. But, no significant correlation was observed between hearing and death in women.

A 10 dB rise in hearing threshold was linked to a 57% increase in the hazard ratio in men, according to the same studies for acute cardiovascular mortality. However, there was no discernible influence of hearing on survival in women. The postural balance correction had no effect on the correlation between hearing loss and death. This study brings out the evidence to support that hearing is related to mortality in males, but not in women. It makes this clear that there is an increase in mortality overall as well as in deaths from ischemic stroke and acute myocardial infarction.

Reference:

Berge, J. E., Nilsen, G. A., Goplen, F. K., Kringeland, E., Nordahl, S. H. G., & Aarstad, H. J. (2024). Hearing, Balance, and Mortality: Sex‐Specific Patterns in a Longitudinal Study. In Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery. Wiley. https://doi.org/10.1002/ohn.903