Assessment of hearing loss severity in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus

Introduction: The association of hearing loss and diabetes has been under research for many years. The hearing loss in diabetes in our population has not been studied extensively. The objective of this study was to compare the hearing threshold between type 2 diabetic patients and age- and sexmatched controls. Materials and Methods: A comparative study was done in the Department of ENT, Kathmandu Medical College from October 2019 to February 2020. The hearing threshold, of 40 type 2 diabetics patients, and 40 age- and sex-matched healthy controls in the age group of 35 to 55 years, were assessed by pure tone audiometry. The hearing threshold was compared between the two groups by using the student’s unpaired t-test. Results: Among 40 diabetes patients, 29 (72.5 %) had bilateral, mild to moderate sensorineural hearing loss. The hearing threshold in diabetes patients was signifi cantly higher than the healthy controls in all the frequencies except at 250 Hz. When comparing the threshold according to the duration of diabetes, it was found to be signifi cantly higher only at higher frequencies (4000 and 8000 Hz) in diabetes with more than 5 years duration. Conclusions: The hearing loss was common in type 2 diabetes mellitus. Most diabetic patients had mostly bilateral mild to moderate sensorineural hearing loss affecting hearing thresholds in higher frequencies than the healthy controls as assessed by pure tone audiometry.

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Type 2 diabetes mellitus and hearing impairment as seen in a tertiary hospital in Port Harcourt

International Journal of Otorhinolaryngology and Head and Neck Surgery ◽

10.18203/issn.2454-5929.ijohns20211179 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 7 (4) ◽

pp. 585

Author(s):

Ibekwe Matilda Uju ◽

Afolabi Simeon

Keyword(s):

Diabetes Mellitus ◽

Type 2 Diabetes ◽

Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus ◽

Hearing Loss ◽

Hearing Impairment ◽

Teaching Hospital ◽

Diabetic Patients ◽

Port Harcourt ◽

Management Protocol

Background: Diabetes mellitus prevalence has been on the increase especially the type 2. This study therefore is to determine the pattern, type and severity of hearing impairment and correlating it with the duration, presence of peripheral neuropathy, glycaemic control of the type 2 diabetes mellitus seen in university of Port Harcourt teaching hospital (UPTH).Methods: It is a descriptive cross sectional study of adult diabetic patients seen at the endocrinology clinic of University of Port Harcourt teaching hospital. Consecutive patients with confirmed diagnosis of diabetes mellitus that gave their informed consent were recruited. A semi structured questionnaire aimed at obtaining the biodata, duration of diabetes and level of control, presence of neuropathy was administered to these patients. They had otoscopy done in addition to audiometric evaluation using pure tone audiometry.Results: The study involved 108 subjects with confirmed diagnosis of type 2 diabetes mellitus. Males; 42 and females; 66. Age ranged from 20 -81years. Hearing impairment was present in 68.52% of the subjects. Audiometric pattern showed 54.6% with SNHL while 31.5% had normal hearing. Majority of the subjects had mild degree hearing loss (50%). Bilateral SNHL was the commonly seen type of hearing loss in 55.93%.Conclusions: There is a high prevalence of hearing loss in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus. The commonest type of hearing loss in these subjects was bilateral mild sensorineural hearing loss. There is therefore a need to incorporate regular audiologic assessment in the management protocol of the adult diabetic patients.

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