Photo credit: speedoglyn1 licensed under CC BY 2.0
by Daniel Fink, MD, Chair, The Quiet Coalition
This article in JAMA Otolaryngology reports a correlation between cardiovascular disease and hearing loss in patients over age 80. The correlation was more pronounced in men than in women.
A correlation between cardiovascular disease and hearing loss has been reported for some years. The blood supply to the inner ear can be affected by atherosclerosis (hardening of the arteries), caused by genetics, smoking, diabetes, dietary fat intake, and the passage of time. A compromised blood supply may damage the cochlea, and may make it less able to recover from noise damage.
The study is an exploratory one, with a small number of subjects, and correlation doesn’t mean causation. But if people lead a heart-healthy lifestyle, they may also be protecting their hearing.
Hearing loss is very common in older Americans, with half of those over 65 having hearing loss.
I still think the major cause of hearing loss is excessive noise exposure over a lifetime, but taking care of your heart can’t hurt.
