Relationship between Subjective Hearing Loss and Work-related and Somatic Issues in the Working-age Population: A Large-scale Internet-based Cross-sectional Study.

INTRODUCTION

Hearing loss is a major problem that negatively impacts human life worldwide. Although factors associated with hearing loss have been widely studied, the impact of hearing loss on social aspects such as work performance in the working-age population remains unclear. To investigate the social and somatic problems associated with hearing loss in working-age individuals, we analyzed data from the Japan COVID-19 and Society Internet Survey (JACSIS), including a questionnaire concerning social aspects, mental health, physical health, and subjective hearing loss.

METHODS

We used the JACSIS 2023 data set, which includes data from 33,000 participants. After excluding participants with inappropriate responses and including those aged 20-64 years, data from 20,691 participants were used for further analysis. We compared various characteristics of the hearing loss group (moderate-to-severe subjective hearing loss) with those of the control group (no subjective hearing loss).

RESULTS

A total of 13,745 participants (male: 6,461; female: 7,284) were included in the control group, and 313 participants (male: 150; female: 163) were included in the hearing loss group. Multivariate logistic regression analysis revealed that both male and female participants in the hearing loss group exhibited higher incidences of tinnitus, presenteeism, somatic symptoms, and dyslipidemia compared with the control group. Additionally, subjective hearing loss was one of the independent explanatory variables for presenteeism in the working-age population.

CONCLUSIONS

Our findings indicate significant associations between moderate-to-severe subjective hearing loss and various work-related and somatic factors in a working-age population, and encourage future research to assess whether subjective hearing loss independently contributes to presenteeism in the working-age population.