This article is more than 5 years old. Information may no longer be current.
Hearing loss rates in teens unaffected by increased noise exposure
Click Here to Manage Email Alerts
Although noise exposure does not impact the prevalence of hearing loss in children, racial or ethnic minority status and low socioeconomic status was associated with an increased risk, according to a study published in JAMA Otolaryngology-Head & Neck Surgery
“With multiple existing classifications of hearing impairment and limited availability of objective measures, assessing the epidemiology of pediatric hearing loss has been challenging,” Brooke M. Su, MD, MPH, from the department of head and neck surgery at the University of California-Los Angeles, and Dylan K. Chan, MD, PhD, from the department of otolaryngology-head and neck surgery at the University of California-San Francisco, wrote.
“There have been growing concerns that the prevalence of hearing loss in children and adolescents, particularly noise-induced hearing loss, is rising, possibly due to recreational noise exposure,” they continued.
To explain changes in the prevalence of hearing loss and noise exposures in those between the ages of 12 and 19 years, the researchers conducted a retrospective analysis of data regarding demographics and audiometric information collected through the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (1988-1994, 2005-2006, 2007-2008 and 2009-2010). These surveys included 7,036 participants.
Su and Chan then examined hearing-related behaviors and risk factors for hearing loss, which include ear infections, noise exposures, firearm use and whether hearing protection was used. They measured high- and low-frequency hearing loss and noise-induced threshold shifts through pure-tone audiometry.
Hearing loss increased in prevalence between 1988-1994 to 2007-2008 (17.0% to 22.5% for greater than 15dB hearing loss; absolute difference, 5.5%; 95% CI, 6.1%-10.3%); however, prevalence decreased in 2009-2010 to 15.2% (absolute difference, 7.2%; 95% CI, 2.0%-12.4%). Although a rise in exposures to loud sounds and music using headphones 24 hours before testing was observed by the researchers, this was not connected with an increase in hearing loss risk in all surveys. Those who were of nonwhite race or ethnicity and of low socioeconomic status were most likely to demonstrate hearing loss.
“Despite these seemingly concurrent changes in hearing loss prevalence and reported noise exposure through 2008, regression analysis did not reveal an association between noise exposures and hearing loss,” Su and Chan wrote. “These findings in total call into question previous conclusions that increasing noise exposure is responsible for increasing levels of pediatric hearing loss.” – by Katherine Bortz
Disclosure: The researchers provide no relevant financial disclosures.
Click Here to Manage Email Alerts