Document Type

Article

Publication Date

11-23-2024

Comments

This article is the author's final published version in Neuroendocrinology Letters, Volume 45, Issue 5, November 2024, Pages 341-351.

Copyright © Neuroendocrinology Letters.

Abstract

OBJECTIVE: To test the hypothesis that patients with poorly controlled type 2 diabetes mellitus are more likely to develop sensorineural hearing loss (SNHL) than non-diabetic patients.

STUDY DESIGN: Retrospective cohort study.

SETTING: TriNetX US Collaborative Network (2003-2022).

METHODS: Electronic medical record data from the TriNetX US Collaborative Network was queried for subjects without prior hearing loss, defined using medical billing codes (ICD-10, CPT, etc.), who were diagnosed with type 2 diabetes mellitus after January 2003. Patients were stratified by most recent HbA1c (8.0-13.9% or ≥14.0%) and by age at diagnosis (21-30, 31-40, 41-50, 51-60, 61-70, ≥71 years). Primary outcome was development of SNHL ≤20 years after diabetes diagnosis. Cohorts were propensity-score matched for age, gender, race, and hearing loss-related conditions, including vascular disease and tobacco/nicotine use. Hearing loss risk in each cohort were compared against age-matched non-diabetic subjects.

RESULTS: All diabetic patients had greater risk of SNHL compared to age-matched controls; having a higher HbA1c (≥14.0%) additionally associated with greater risk than a lower HbA1c (8.0-13.9%) for all age groups except 21-30 and 31-40 years. Furthermore, risk was higher for older patients of both HbA1c ranges, with patients ≥71 years at diagnosis having greatest risk. Patients ≥71 with HbA1c ≥14.0% (n = 3,870) had a 0.51% (95% confidence interval: 0.28-0.74, p < 0.0001) greater hearing loss risk, and patients with HbA1c 8.0-13.9% (n = 155,066) had 0.24% (0.22-0.27, p < 0.0001) greater risk.

CONCLUSION: Type 2 diabetes diagnosis appears to strongly associate with greater risk of developing SNHL, especially in older patients. Audiometric screening may be warranted.

Creative Commons License

Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 License.

PubMed ID

39688661

Language

English

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