The Silent Clue: Unveiling Hearing Loss in Hypothyroidism – A Cross-sectional Study

Background: Auditory acuity reduction has been associated with thyroid gland dysfunction and has been described by various authors. Studies have shown that hypothyroidism is associated with all types of hearing loss: sensorineural, mixed, and conductive. Objective: To assess the proportion, type, and degree of hearing impairment among patients with hypothyroidism and to correlate the duration and degree of hearing impairment. Materials and Methods: It is a descriptive cross-sectional study conducted at a tertiary care center from November 2018 to May 2020. A total of 90 patients suffering from hypothyroidism were screened for hearing loss using tuning fork tests and pure tone audiograms for hearing loss. Results: In this study, 52 patients (57.8%) were found to have mild-to-moderate sensorineural hearing loss (SNHL), affecting higher frequency earlier than the mid and low frequency. There is a statistically significant correlation between hearing impairment and duration of illness. Hearing impairment was found to be more in patients on irregular treatment (thyroxine) and thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH) values >4.2 mIU. Conclusion: SNHL is a prevalent yet underrecognized complication of hypothyroidism, significantly influenced by TSH levels, disease duration, and treatment adherence – highlighting the need for routine audiological screening in hypothyroid patients to enhance early detection and quality of life.