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An increasing prevalence of hearing impairment and associated risk factors over three decades of the Alameda County Study.

M I Wallhagen, W J Strawbridge, R D Cohen and G A Kaplan

Department of Physiological Nursing, School of Nursing University of California, San Francisco 94143-0610, USA.

OBJECTIVES: This study assessed changes in the prevalence of hearing impairment in persons aged 50 years and older over the past 30 years and identified risk factors. METHODS: Age-adjusted hearing impairment prevalence rates at four time intervals were calculated from the Alameda County Study (n = 5108). Logistic regression models analyzed risk factors from 1974 for 1994 incident hearing impairment. RESULTS: The prevalence of hearing impairment nearly doubled between 1965 and 1994. The increase was significantly greater for men. The higher incidence was associated with potentially high-noise-exposure occupations for men and with symptoms and conditions associated with ototoxic drug use for both men and women. Exercise was protective. CONCLUSIONS: Given the serious health and social consequences of hearing impairment, its increasing prevalence is cause for concern.

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