Long Lili, Meng Zhaoli, Jia Zhenchao, Tang Xinghua
Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Sichuan University Hospital of Sichuan University, Chengdu, China.
Department of Otorhinolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, West China Hospital of Sichuan University, Chengdu, China.
Front Aging Neurosci. 2022 Jun 3;14:770159. doi: 10.3389/fnagi.2022.770159. eCollection 2022.
Although telomere length has a significant relationship with various age-related diseases, studies on its relationship with hearing status in adults are limited and equivocal. This study investigated the associations between mean telomere length (MTL) and low-, speech-, and high-frequency hearing threshold shifts of adults in the United States.
A total of 2,027 adults, aged 20-69 years, from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Surveys (NHANES, 1999-2002) were included in the analytic sample. The quantitative polymerase chain reaction method was used for the MTL assay, and MTL was expressed using the telomere-to-single copy gene (T/S) ratio. Hearing loss was defined as a pure-tone average (PTA) for the better ear at ≥ 20 dB HL at frequencies 500, 1,000, 2,000, and 4,000 Hz. Univariate and multivariate linear regression analyses and smooth curve fittings were conducted to evaluate the correlation between MTL and low-, speech-, and high-frequency hearing levels.
The mean age of the participants was 40.60 ± 12.76 years, including 952 men (weighted, 48.67%) and 303 (weighted, 12.88%) participants with hearing loss. After adjusting for potential confounders in the multivariate linear regression model, the relationship between MTL and hearing thresholds was not statistically significant. Smooth curve fittings indicated a non-linear relationship between MTL and high-frequency PTA hearing threshold shifts. MTL was inversely related to high-frequency PTA to the turning point (T/S ratio = 0.82) (adjusted β-21.45, 95% CI -37.28, -5.62; = 0.008). When the T/S ratio exceeded0.82, MTL was not associated with high-frequency PTA (adjusted β0.18, 95% CI -2.21, 2.57; = 0.8809).
Our findings revealed that MTL was associated with high-frequency PTA hearing threshold shifts of adults in the United States in a non-linear manner.
尽管端粒长度与各种年龄相关疾病存在显著关联，但关于其与成年人听力状况关系的研究有限且存在争议。本研究调查了美国成年人的平均端粒长度（MTL）与低、语音和高频听力阈值变化之间的关联。
分析样本纳入了来自国家健康与营养检查调查（NHANES，1999 - 2002）的2027名年龄在20 - 69岁的成年人。采用定量聚合酶链反应方法进行MTL检测，MTL以端粒与单拷贝基因（T/S）比值表示。听力损失定义为较好耳在500、1000、2000和4000赫兹频率处的纯音平均听阈（PTA）≥20分贝听力级（dB HL）。进行单变量和多变量线性回归分析以及平滑曲线拟合，以评估MTL与低、语音和高频听力水平之间的相关性。
参与者的平均年龄为40.60±12.76岁，其中包括952名男性（加权后占48.67%）和303名（加权后占12.88%）有听力损失的参与者。在多变量线性回归模型中对潜在混杂因素进行调整后，MTL与听力阈值之间的关系无统计学意义。平滑曲线拟合表明MTL与高频PTA听力阈值变化之间存在非线性关系。MTL与高频PTA在转折点（T/S比值 = 0.82）之前呈负相关（调整后β = -21.45，95%置信区间 -37.28，-5.62；P = 0.008）。当T/S比值超过0.82时，MTL与高频PTA无关（调整后β = 0.18，95%置信区间 -2.21，2.57；P = 0.8809）。
我们的研究结果表明，MTL与美国成年人的高频PTA听力阈值变化呈非线性关联。
