Abstract
Hearing loss (HL) is the third most common chronic physical condition in the United States. Obesity has become an increasingly important public health concern, as the prevalence in children, adolescents and adults has increased over the past few decades. The objectives of this study is to investigate whether obesity is associated with audiometric notches indicative of noise-induced hearing loss (NIHL), speech frequency hearing loss (SFHL), and high frequency hearing loss (HFHL) in adolescent participants of the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey 2007–2010. The prevalence of overall audiometric notches in the adolescent population was 16.0% with higher prevalence in females than males. The prevalence of SFHL and HFHL were higher in males than females (SFHL, 7.3% vs. 5.4%, respectively; and HFHL 14.3% vs. 8.1%, respectively). Obese adolescents had a higher adjusted OR to have audiometric notches (OR = 1.93; 95% CI: 1.33–2.81) and HFHL (OR = 1.95; 95% CI: 1.19–3.21). Continued preventative efforts towards reducing obesity might also help to reduce the risk for HL and NIHL.
Highlights
Hearing loss (HL) is the third most common chronic physical condition in the United States[1]
The weighted prevalence of audiometric notches in obese adolescents was higher compared to normal weight adolescents (24.8% vs 14.7%)
The weighted prevalence of high frequency hearing loss (HFHL) in obese adolescents was statistically significant higher compared to normal weight adolescents (17.9% vs 5.4%), (Table 2)
Summary
Hearing loss (HL) is the third most common chronic physical condition in the United States[1]. One of the first signs of noise-induced hearing loss (NIHL) is an audiometric indication of a noise-induced hearing threshold shift (NITS), usually defined as an “audiometric notch” at 3, 4, or 6 kHz. Henderson and colleagues[4] reported increased prevalence of audiometric notches in adolescents: 15.9% in NHANES 1998–1994 to 16.8% in NHANES 2005– 2006. Data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) suggest that the prevalence of HL among United States adolescents (12–19 years old) increased from 1994 to 2006 for both high frequency HL (HFHL) and low frequency HL (LFHL). The objective of this study is to investigate whether obesity is associated with audiometric notches indicative of NIHL and hearing loss in adolescents in a nationally representative survey
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
