The rate of hearing loss is double in people with diabetes compared to those without the disease, according to a study presented at the American Diabetes Association’s 67th Scientific Sessions in June 2007 in Chicago. The study was based on a survey of 5,140 participants between the ages of 20 and 69 who underwent hearing testing and completed questionnaires about their diabetes status between 1999 and 2004. Analysis revealed that 31% of diabetic participants experienced hearing loss, compared with 15% of non-diabetic participants. Increased hearing loss that accompanies aging was accounted for in the analysis.

The increased risk of hearing loss in diabetics was not affected by gender, race, ethnicity, education, socioeconomics, and past exposure to noise. These results lead researchers to recommend that people with diabetes get their hearing tested at the onset of the disease. The belief is that the earlier hearing loss is detected, the better the results for intervention. Researchers believe that hearing loss may be a diabetes complication comparable to cardiovascular disease and stroke that occur 2 to 4 times more often in people with diabetes.

A possible connection between hearing loss and diabetes has been the subject of studies back into the 1800s but has never been as well documented as vision loss. The mechanism for hearing loss with diabetes is not clear, but any impairment of the blood supply and nerve centers in the hearing pathway is a likely cause of hearing loss. It is nearly impossible to observe directly the microvascular changes in the human ear suspected of causing hearing loss, but we do know that this type of damage occurs in the eyes and kidneys of patients with diabetes.

Nerve cell damage further only the hearing pathway may also be associated with hearing loss. Studies have indicated that electrical signals from the cochlea in the ear may travel more slowly along the auditory nerve and brainstem in people with diabetes compared people who do not have the disease. These changes could alter the processing of complex sounds such as speech, meaning that people with diabetes could have difficulty understanding speech even with little or no hearing loss.

Currently the diabetes standards of care require that people with diabetes undergo regular examination to monitor changes in vision, kidney function, cardiovascular health, and tactile sensitivity. Continuing research may show that regular monitoring for hearing loss may also be required for patients with diabetes.

References: Diabetes May Hinder Hearing, American Diabetes Association, DOC News, August 2007. http://www.drf.org/hearing_health/archive/2003/fall03_diabetesandhearingloss.htm.

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