Hearing Loss in Type 2 Diabetes in Association with Diabetic Neuropathy

Background Reports assessing hearing abnormalities in diabetes are debated. We aimed to evaluated auditory alterations and their possible associations with vascular and neurological dysfunction in 160 Type 2 diabetes mellitus individuals and 100 age and sex-matched healthy controls. Methods Participants underwent pure tone audiometry (PTA). Associations with demographic, metabolic and neuropathic variables were assessed. Results Compared with healthy controls, diabetic patients had higher mean hearing thresholds at each frequency, with statistical significance at 2–8 kHz ( p Conclusions These findings suggest that hearing loss is common in T2DM subjects, with predominantly high frequency involved. Diabetic neuropathic factors may explain the underlying mechanism of the association between diabetes and hearing loss.