Uncovering the connection between kidney and auditory health
Investigators have examined whether chronic kidney disease could be connected to hearing loss and tinnitus.
In a study, published in Frontiers in Medicine, the investigators used 2015 to 2019 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey data to analyze the outcomes of 5,131 patients — 19% of whom had chronic kidney disease.
Compared with those who didn’t have chronic kidney disease, the patients who did have chronic kidney disease were more likely to experience concurrent hearing loss but not tinnitus. However, tinnitus was associated with chronic kidney disease in patients aged 45 years and older, female patients, nonsmokers and those with a body mass index of 25 kilograms per meter squared or higher.
The investigators hypothesized that the anatomical and physiological similarities shared by the kidney and cochlea may contribute to the observed associations. They concluded that further studies may be needed to establish a causal relationship between chronic kidney disease and auditory dysfunction.
Read more: Frontiers in Medicine
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