Self-reported hearing-related symptoms among adults with diabetes: a cross-sectional study

Introduction Hearing impairment has been increasingly recognized as being associated with diabetes mellitus. Although previous studies have demonstrated a higher prevalence of hearing loss among people with diabetes, less is known about self-reported hearing-related symptoms and their association with demographic and clinical characteristics among adults with diabetes. Purpose To assess the burden of self-reported hearing-related symptoms among adults with diabetes and examine their associations with age, sex, and diabetes duration. Methods A cross-sectional study was conducted during the first half of 2022 among 128 adults with diabetes. Data were collected using an author-developed questionnaire constructed based on a review of the literature addressing hearing-related symptoms and their everyday and social consequences. The questionnaire was not formally validated. A Hearing-Related Symptom Score was calculated from seven self-reported symptom questions (range, 0–7). Multivariable Poisson regression with robust standard errors was used to examine associations between the Hearing-Related Symptom Score and age, sex, and diabetes duration. Results The mean age was 51.19 years (SD, 16.88), and the median Hearing-Related Symptom Score was 4 (range, 0–7). In the multivariable model ( n = 127), older age was independently associated with a higher symptom score (adjusted ratio of expected symptom-score burden, 1.02; 95% CI, 1.01–1.03; P < 0.001), while male sex was associated with a lower symptom score than female sex (adjusted ratio of expected symptom-score burden, 0.83; 95% CI, 0.69–0.99; P = 0.037). Diabetes duration was not independently associated with symptom score (adjusted ratio of expected symptom-score burden, 1.01; 95% CI, 1.00–1.02; P = 0.170). Age remained positively associated with symptom burden in both women and men; however, the age-by-sex interaction was not statistically significant ( P = 0.501). Conclusion Self-reported hearing-related symptom burden was associated with age and sex, but not independently with diabetes duration after adjustment. Findings should be interpreted cautiously given the cross-sectional design, convenience sampling, self-reported data, and use of a non-validated questionnaire. Further studies using validated instruments and objective hearing assessment are warranted.