Background: Twenty-two million workers are exposed to hazardous noise in the United States. The purpose of this study is to estimate the prevalence of hearing loss among U.S. industries.

Methods: We examined 2000–2008 audiograms for male and female workers ages 18–65, who had higher occupational noise exposures than the general population. Prevalence and adjusted prevalence ratios (PRs) for hearing loss were estimated and compared across industries.

Results: In our sample, 18% of workers had hearing loss. When compared with the Couriers and Messengers industry sub-sector, workers employed in Mining (PR = 1.65, CI = 1.57–1.73), Wood Product Manufacturing (PR = 1.65, CL = 1.61– 1.70), Construction of Buildings (PR = 1.59, CI = 1.51–1.68), and Real Estate and Rental and Leasing (PR = 1.61, CL = 1.51–1.71) had higher risks for hearing loss.

Conclusions: Workers in the Mining, Manufacturing, and Construction industries need better engineering controls for noise and stronger hearing conservation strategies. More hearing loss research is also needed within traditional ‘‘low-risk’’ industries like Real Estate.

Purpose: Falls are considered a significant public health issue, and hearing loss has been shown to be an independent risk factor for falls. The primary objective of this study was to determine if hearing aid use modified (reduced) the association. We hypothesized that routine hearing aid use would reduce the impact of hearing loss on the odds of falling. If hearing aid users have reduced odds of falling, then that would have an important impact on falls prevention health care.Method: Data from 8,091 individuals 40 years of age and older who completed National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) cycles 1999–2004 were used. NHANES comprises a series of cross-sectional studies, each of which is representative of the total civilian noninstitutionalized population of children and adults in the United States, enabling unbiased national estimates of health that can be independently reproduced. Self-reported hearing, hearing aid status, falls history, and comorbidities were extracted and analyzed using regression modeling.Results: The 8,091 individuals were grouped based on a self-reported history of falls in the last year. Self-reported hearing loss was significantly associated with odds of falling. Categorizing individuals based on routine hearing aid use was included as an interaction term in the fully adjusted models and was not significant, suggesting no difference in falls based on hearing aid status.Conclusions: The unique results of the current study show that when examining self-reported hearing in a nationally representative sample, hearing aid use does not appear to mitigate or modify the association between self-reported hearing and falls. Future research designs are highlighted to address limitations identified using NHANES data for this research, and focus on the use of experimental designs to further understand the association between hearing loss and falls, and whether hearing loss may be a modifiable risk factor for falls.Supplemental Material S1. NHANES variables used to define measures of interest.Supplemental Material S2. Odds ratio of self-reported falls by hearing loss as measured by hearing handicap.Riska, K. M., Peskoe, S. B., Gordee, A., Kuchibhatla, M., & Smith, S. L. (2021). Preliminary evidence on the impact of hearing aid use on falls risk in individuals with self-reported hearing loss. American Journal of Audiology. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1044/2021_AJA-20-00179

This table contains 324 series, with data for years 2013 - 2015 (not all combinations necessarily have data for all years). This table contains data described by the following dimensions (Not all combinations are available): Geography (1 item: Canada) Measures (3 items: Low-frequency hearing loss; High-frequency hearing loss; Speech-frequency hearing loss) Sex (3 items: Both sexes; Males; Females) Age group (6 items: Ages 6 to 79; Ages 6 to 11; Ages 12 to 19; Ages 20 to 39; ...) Categories (2 items: Hearing loss; No hearing loss) Characteristics (3 items: Estimate; Low 95% confidence interval, estimate; High 95% confidence interval, estimate)

Objective: In occupational hearing conservation programmes, age adjustments may be used to subtract expected age effects. Adjustments used in the U.S. came from a small dataset and overlooked important demographic factors, ages, and stimulus frequencies. The present study derived a set of population-based age adjustment tables and validated them using a database of exposed workers. Design: Cross-sectional population-based study and retrospective longitudinal cohort study for validation. Study sample: Data from the U.S. National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (unweighted n = 9937) were used to produce these tables. Male firefighters and emergency medical service workers (76,195 audiograms) were used for validation. Results: Cross-sectional trends implied less change with age than assumed in current U.S. regulations. Different trends were observed among people identifying with non-Hispanic Black race/ethnicity. Four age adjustment tables (age range: 18–85) were developed (women or men; non-Hispanic Black or other race/ethnicity). Validation outcomes showed that the population-based tables matched median longitudinal changes in hearing sensitivity well. Conclusions: These population-based tables provide a suitable replacement for those implemented in current U.S. regulations. These tables address a broader range of worker ages, account for differences in hearing sensitivity across race/ethnicity categories, and have been validated for men using longitudinal data.

ObjectivesSouth Korea's National Health Insurance has provided hearing aids to registered individuals with hearing disabilities since 1989. In 2015, hearing aid subsidies increased to approximately US$1,000. This study aimed to understand hearing loss categories in Korea by analyzing patients between 2010 and 2020 and the effect of the 2015 hearing aid policy change on the prevalence of hearing loss.MethodsThe participants were patients registered on the National Health Insurance Service database from 2010 to 2020 with hearing loss. A total of 5,784,429 patients were included in this study. Hearing loss was classified into conductive, sensorineural, and other categories. Patients with hearing loss were classified according to the International Classification of Diseases diagnostic code. Disability diagnosis and hearing aid prescription were defined using the National Health Insurance Disability and Hearing Aid Code.ResultsThe increase in hearing aid prescriptions and hearing disability registrations following the subsidy increase impacts hearing loss prevalence. Hearing aid prescription and hearing disability were found to have an effect on increasing hearing loss prevalence in univariate and multivariate analyses. The r-value of each analysis exceeded 0.95. Other hearing losses increased rapidly after the increased subsidy.ConclusionA hearing-impaired individual must be diagnosed with a hearing disability and prescribed a hearing aid to receive the subsidy. The prevalence of hearing loss was affected by increased hearing disabilities following changes in the hearing aid subsidy and the number of people prescribed hearing aids. Therefore, caution should be exercised when studying hearing loss prevalence over mid-long-term periods.

The Seniors In Market for Hearing Aid Database from AmeriList is a premier hearing aid mailing list and senior marketing database that connects businesses with over 16.6 million verified U.S. seniors actively seeking hearing aid solutions. Unlike general senior lists, this high-intent hearing aid database identifies purchase-ready senior prospects who have expressed clear interest in hearing aids, audiology services, senior healthcare, and hearing care solutions. This database empowers marketers to engage a responsive, intent-driven audience for direct mail, email marketing, and telemarketing campaigns.

Whether you’re a hearing aid manufacturer, an audiology practice, a hearing aid distributor, a medical device retailer, or a health insurance provider, this list allows you to directly target seniors in market for hearing aids, individuals who are actively researching hearing devices, requesting information, or planning a purchase. With this data, you can eliminate wasted marketing spend and focus on qualified hearing aid leads with the highest likelihood to convert.

Key Features of the Seniors Hearing Aid Database

• Extensive Reach: Over 16,695,236 seniors nationwide who are actively looking for hearing aids, hearing healthcare solutions, and related senior health services.
• Multi-Channel Accessibility: Perfect for direct mail campaigns, email outreach, and telemarketing, ensuring full coverage across preferred communication channels.
• Purchase Intent: These are not passive records. Seniors in this list have shown purchase intent for hearing aids through online research, catalog requests, survey responses, lifestyle questionnaires, and product inquiries.
• Verified & Updated Data: Every record undergoes USPS NCOA (National Change of Address), CASS certification, DPV verification, and Zip+4 coding for mailing accuracy. Data is updated monthly to maintain freshness and reliability.
• Minimum Order Size: Flexible ordering beginning at 5,000 records, with customization options to refine your audience by age, income, geography, and health interest segments.

Target Audience Profile

This hearing aid consumer database profiles seniors who:

• Are typically age 55–80+, the key demographic most in need of hearing assistance.
• Have actively expressed interest in hearing aid devices, audiology services, and senior hearing healthcare products.
• May have income and net worth levels that make them more likely to purchase premium hearing aid devices and accessories.
• Represent a growing senior population where nearly 80% of hearing aid users are age 60+, aligning with U.S. demographic trends.
• Show lifestyle interest in healthcare products, medical devices, senior wellness, and assisted living services.

Campaign Use Cases

This senior marketing list is especially effective for:

• Hearing Aid Manufacturers: Market new devices, wireless hearing aids, rechargeable hearing aid models, and hearing health technology.
• Audiology Clinics & Hearing Specialists: Promote consultations, screenings, hearing exams, and clinic services to qualified seniors.
• Health Insurance Providers & Medicare Plans: Target seniors needing hearing aid coverage, supplemental insurance, or benefit programs.
• Senior Care & Assisted Living Facilities: Reach families and individuals evaluating hearing healthcare as part of long-term care.
• Medical Device Retailers: Cross-sell hearing aid batteries, accessories, ear care products, and related healthcare devices.
• Wellness Brands & Pharmacies: Offer senior health solutions, hearing protection products, or bundled senior healthcare services.

Why This Database Delivers

• Intent-Based Targeting: You’re reaching verified senior hearing aid prospects, not just a general senior population. This dramatically improves conversion rates.
• Multi-Channel Flexibility: Deploy your campaigns via email, postal mail, or telemarketing, based on your preferred outreach model.
• High Data Integrity: With USPS-certified hygiene and monthly updates, the risk of bad addresses, email bounces, or wasted dials is minimized.
• Scalable & Customizable: Whether you need a broad national reach or hyper-local targeting, filters such as age, income, state, city, and buying behavior allow for highly personalized campaigns.
• Growth Opportunity: The U.S. hearing aid market generates over $4.5 billion annually, and seniors are delaying purchase for 7–10 years on average, meaning that millions of seniors are entering the purchase funnel each year.

Overall

The Seniors In Market for Hearing Aid Database is the ultimate tool for marketers in the hearing healthcare, audiology, and senior wellness industries. With millions of verified, purchase-ready hearing aid consumers, monthly data updates, and robust segmentation options, this list ensures higher response rates, lower marketing waste, and stronger ROI. Whether your strategy is direct mail, email marketing, or telemarketing, this hearing aid buyers list gives you the ...

Context

Health care in the United States is provided by many distinct organizations. Health care facilities are largely owned and operated by private sector businesses. 58% of US community hospitals are non-profit, 21% are government owned, and 21% are for-profit. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), the United States spent more on healthcare per capita ($9,403), and more on health care as percentage of its GDP (17.1%), than any other nation in 2014. Many different datasets are needed to portray different aspects of healthcare in US like disease prevalences, pharmaceuticals and drugs, Nutritional data of different food products available in US. Such data is collected by surveys (or otherwise) conducted by Centre of Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Foods and Drugs Administration, Center of Medicare and Medicaid Services and Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ). These datasets can be used to properly review demographics and diseases, determining start ratings of healthcare providers, different drugs and their compositions as well as package informations for different diseases and for food quality. We often want such information and finding and scraping such data can be a huge hurdle. So, Here an attempt is made to make available all US healthcare data at one place to download from in csv files.

Content

• Nhanes Survey (National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey) - The National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) is a program of studies designed to assess the health and nutritional status of adults and children in the United States. The survey is unique in that it combines interviews and physical examinations. NHANES is a major program of the National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS). NCHS is part of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and has the responsibility for producing vital and health statistics for the Nation. The NHANES interview includes demographic, socioeconomic, dietary, and health-related questions. The examination component consists of medical, dental, and physiological measurements, as well as laboratory tests administered by highly trained medical personnel. The diseases, medical conditions, and health indicators to be studied include: Anemia, Cardiovascular disease, Diabetes, Environmental exposures, Eye diseases, Hearing loss, Infectious diseases, Kidney disease, Nutrition, Obesity, Oral health, Osteoporosis, Physical fitness and physical functioning, Reproductive history and sexual behavior, Respiratory disease (asthma, chronic bronchitis, emphysema), Sexually transmitted diseases, Vision. 10000 individuals are surveyed to represent US statistics. Five files in this datasets represent current recent Nhanes data -
  Nhanes_2005_2006.csv
  Nhanes_2007_2008.csv
  Nhanes_2009_2010.csv
  Nhanes_2011_2012.csv
  Nhanes_2013_2014.csv
  
  • Data fields' description -
    • Nhanes_2005_2006.csv - Demographic, Dietary, Examinations, Laboratory
    • Nhanes_2007_2008.csv - Demographic, Dietary, Examinations, Laboratory
    • Nhanes_2009_2010.csv - Demographic, Dietary, Examinations, Laboratory
    • Nhanes_2011_2012.csv - Demographic, Dietary, [Examinations](http://https://wwwn.cdc.gov/nchs/nhanes/search/variab...

Adult-onset hearing loss is very common but we know little about the underlying molecular pathogenesis, impeding development of therapies. We took a genetic approach to identify new molecules involved in hearing loss by screening a large cohort of newly-generated mouse mutants using a sensitive electrophysiological test, the auditory brainstem response. We review here the findings from this screen. Thirty-eight unexpected genes associated with raised thresholds were detected from our unbiased sample of 1,211 genes tested, suggesting extreme genetic heterogeneity. A wide range of auditory pathophysiologies was found, and some mutant lines showed normal development followed by deterioration of responses, revealing new molecular pathways involved in progressive hearing loss. Several of the genes were associated with the range of hearing thresholds in the human population and one, SPNS2, was involved in childhood deafness. The new pathways required for maintenance of hearing discovered by this screen present new therapeutic opportunities.

Vestibular schwannoma (VS) is an intracranial tumor arising from neoplastic Schwann cells, and typically presenting with hearing loss. The traditional belief that hearing deficit is caused by physical expansion of the VS, compressing the auditory nerve, does not explain the common clinical finding that patients with small tumors can have profound hearing loss, suggesting that tumor-secreted factors could influence hearing ability in VS patients. We conducted profiling of patients' plasma for 66 immune-related factors in patients with sporadic VS (N>170) and identified and validated candidate biomarkers associated with tumor size (S100B) and hearing (MCP-3). We further identified a 9-biomarker panel (TNR-R2, MIF, CD30, MCP-3, IL-2R, BLC, TWEAK, eotaxin, S100B) with outstanding discriminatory ability for VS. These findings revealed possible therapeutic targets for VS, providing a unique diagnostic tool that may predict hearing change and tumor growth in VS patients, and may inform the timing of tumor resection to preserve hearing. Methods Study population and specimen collection From 07/2015–04/2021, blood was prospectively collected from patients undergoing VS resection at Massachusetts Eye and Ear (MEE) in Boston, MA on the day of surgery, typically within 30 minutes of inducing general anesthesia and ≥1 hour before tumor microdissection (discovery cohort). Blood was similarly prospectively collected from 08/2021–06/2023 at Stanford Hospital in Palo Alto, CA (validation cohort). Blood from controls was collected at the Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) Blood Donor Center in Boston, MA, and the Research Blood Components in Watertown, MA for the discovery cohort, and from the Stanford Hospital Blood Donor Center in Palo Alto, CA for the validation cohort. At collection, fresh blood was stored in EDTA vacutainer tubes (Becton Dickinson, NY, US) and kept at 4˚C without freezing. The whole blood samples were centrifuged at 2000 g for 10 min at 4°C. Plasma was separated and spun at 2000 g for 5 min at 4°C. Centrifuged plasma was filtered through 0.8 μm filter units (MF-Millipore MCE membrane, SLAA033SB; Millipore, Burlington, MA, US) and stored at -80°C until further use. Eligible patients had unilateral, sporadic VS that had not been previously resected or irradiated. Of 186 and 50 enrolled VS patients in the discovery and validation cohorts, 163 and 50 met inclusion criteria, respectively, and were included in the analyses for comparison with 70 and 43 controls, respectively. Clinical data Clinical and demographic data were collected from patient charts, operative reports, pathology reports, and pre-operative radiographic imaging. Patient variables included age at tissue collection; pre-surgical tumor volume measured via high-resolution axial contrast-enhanced T1-weighted brain MRI; internal auditory canal protocol; and pre-surgical pure-tone audiometric threshold and WR measurements. MRI and hearing tests were those nearest to resection, typically ≤3 months. WR was defined as the percentage of spoken monosyllabic words discernable from a list typically read at 70 dB or the level at which a patient's speech intelligibility curve plateaus. Pure-tone audiometric thresholds at 0.5, 1, 2, and 3 kHz were used to calculate the PTA. Hearing groups were defined according to the American Academy of Otolaryngology–Head and Neck Surgery (AAO-HNS) Hearing Classification Guidelines. GH was defined as WR>70% and PTA<30 dB (AAO-HNS class A hearing). Otherwise, patients were classified as having PH (AAO-HNS class B, C and D hearing). A deaf ear was assigned a PTA of 125 dB and WR score of 0%. Serviceable hearing (SH) was defined as WR>50% and PTA<50 dB (AAO-HNS class A and B hearing). Otherwise, patients were classified as having non-serviceable hearing (NSH) (AAO-HNS class C and D hearing). Tumor resection was defined as GTR if there was complete tumor removal or a small tumor remnant no greater than 5x5x2 mm was left behind to preserve nerve integrity. Otherwise, it was defined as STR. Biomarker measurements Luminex (65 cytokines, chemokines, growth factors, and soluble receptors); electrochemoluminescence (IL-18, TNF-α, and FGF-2); and ELISA (S100B) assays were conducted as described in detail below. Potential biomarkers were defined as those detectable in the plasma of >75% of patients Luminex assay Simultaneous multiplex profiling of 65 immune-related factors composed of cytokines, chemokines, and growth factors was performed using a customized multiplex bead-based immunoassay - Immune Monitoring 65-Plex Human ProcartaPlex™ Panel (#EPX650-10065-901; ThermoFisher Scientific, Waltham, MA, US) according to manufacturer's instructions. The fluorescence-based signal was acquired on the Magpix instrument (Luminex, Austin, TX, US), and the values of analytes were calculated using ProcartaPlex Analyst 1.0 Software (ThermoFisher Scientific). The analytes with values below the lower limit of quantification in more than 75% of all samples were excluded from the analysis. For the accepted analytes, the values between 0 pg/mL and the lower limit of quantification, and those exceeding the upper limit of quantification, were approximated with the lowest and highest concentration representing these limits, respectively. Electrochemiluminescence assay The following candidate biomarkers were measured using electrochemiluminescence-based human assays from Meso Scale Diagnostics (MSD, Rockville, MD, US): IL-18 (U-PLEX Human IL-18), and TNF-α (U-PLEX Human TNF-α). All assays were conducted according to the manufacturer's protocols and signal detection was performed on the QuickPlex SQ 120 device (MSD). Pre-analytical data processing was done using MSD Discovery Workbench software (v4.0.12). ELISA assay The S100B ELISA Kit (#EZHS100B- 33K; EMD Millipore, Billerica, MA, US) was used to measure S100B protein levels in the plasma of VS patients and controls. ELISA assays were performed by adhering to the manufacturer's protocol. Absorbance was measured using Spectra MAX 190 plate Reader (Molecular Devices, Sunnyvale, CA, US), and the standard curve was plotted using SoftMax Pro software (v5.2; Molecular Devices, San Jose, CA, US).

These data are being released in BETA version to facilitate early access to the study for research purposes. This collection has not been fully processed by NACDA or ICPSR at this time; the original materials provided by the principal investigator were minimally processed and converted to other file types for ease of use. As the study is further processed and given enhanced features by ICPSR, users will be able to access the updated versions of the study. Please report any data errors or problems to user support and we will work with you to resolve any data related issues. The National Health Interview Survey (NHIS) is conducted annually and sponsored by the National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS), which is part of the U.S. Public Health Service. The purpose of the NHIS is to obtain information about the amount and distribution of illness, its effects in terms of disability and chronic impairments, and the kinds of health services people receive across the United States population through the collection and analysis of data on a broad range of health topics. The redesigned NHIS questionnaire introduced in 1997 (see National Health Interview Survey, 1997 [ICPSR 2954]) consists of a core that remains largely unchanged from year to year, plus an assortment of supplements varying from year to year. The 2010 NHIS Core consists of three modules: Family, Sample Adult, and Sample Child. The datasets derived from these modules include Household Level, Family Level, Person Level, Injury/Poison Episode Level, Injury/Poison Verbatim Level, Sample Adult Level, and Sample Child level. The 2010 NHIS supplements consist of stand alone datasets for Cancer Level and Quality of Life data derived from the Sample Adult core and Disability Questions Tests 2010 Level derived from the Family core questionnaire. Additional supplementary questions can be found in the Sample Child dataset on the topics of cancer, immunization, mental health, and mental health services and in the Sample Adult dataset on the topics of epilepsy, immunization, and occupational health. Part 1, Household Level, contains data on type of living quarters, number of families in the household responding and not responding, and the month and year of the interview for each sampling unit. Parts 2-5 are based on the Family Core questionnaire. Part 2, Family Level, provides information on all family members with respect to family size, family structure, health status, limitation of daily activities, cognitive impairment, health conditions, doctor visits, hospital stays, health care access and utilization, employment, income, participation in government assistance programs, and basic demographic information. Part 3, Person Level, includes information on sex, age, race, marital status, education, family income, major activities, health status, health care costs, activity limits, and employment status. Parts 4 and 5, Injury/Poisoning Episode Level and Injury/Poisoning Verbatim Level, consist of questions about injuries and poisonings that resulted in medical consultations for any family members and contains information about the external cause and nature of the injury or poisoning episode and what the person was doing at the time of the injury or poisoning episode, in addition to the date and place of occurrence. A randomly-selected adult in each family was interviewed for Part 6, Sample Adult Level, regarding specific health issues, the relation between employment and health, health status, health care and doctor visits, limitation of daily activities, immunizations, and behaviors such as smoking, alcohol consumption, and physical activity. Demographic information, including occupation and industry, also was collected. The respondents to Part 6 also completed Part 7, Cancer Level, which consists of a set of supplemental questions about diet and nutrition, physical activity, tobacco, cancer screening, genetic testing, family history, and survivorship. Part 8, Sample Child Level, provides information from an adult in the household on medical conditions of one child in the household, such as developmental or intellectual disabilities, respiratory problems, seizures, allergies, and use of special equipment like hearing aids, braces, or wheelchairs. Parts 9 through 13 comprise the additional Supplements and Paradata for the 2010 NHIS. Part 9, Disability Questions Tests 2010 Level

This collection contains the quantitative data resulting from the analysis of the elderLUCID audio corpus – a set of speech recordings collected for 83 adults aged 19 to 84 years inclusive. Recordings were made while participants carried out two types of collaborative tasks with a conversational partner who was a young adult of the same sex: (1) a ‘spot the difference’ picture task (‘diapix’) where the conversational partners had to collaborate to find 12 differences between their pictures and (2) a BKB sentence repetition task where the key participant had to read a set of sentences to their partner who had to repeat them back. The two tasks were carried out by each participant pair in four different conditions: (1) in good listening conditions when both could hear each other normally (NORM condition), or when perception was impaired for one or both of the participants by (2) simulating a severe-to-profound hearing loss in the conversational partner (HLS condition), (3) adding multispeaker babble noise to the audio channel for the conversational partner (BAB1 condition) or to the audio channel of both participants (BAB2 condition). The aim of the study was to examine the clarification strategies used by older adults and young adult controls to maintain effective communication in adverse communicative conditions. The SPSS spreadsheet contains, for each of the 83 participants, quantitative data resulting from (a) the acoustic analysis of the recordings, (b) measures of communication efficiency and (c) background auditory and cognitive measures.

Speech communication can be difficult for older people, due to the combined effects of age-related hearing loss, which is common over the age of 65, age-related decline in the quality of phonation and speech articulation, and cognitive problems such as poorer short-term memory and processing speed. Past studies of how older individuals perceive and produce speech sounds have tended to consider these abilities independently of each other using controlled materials, such as read words or sentences. These studies tell us little about how older speakers function when using speech for communicative purposes, and how these various factors interact. For example, it has been shown that older people benefit from seeing their interlocutor in conversations, but audiovisual speech places greater demands on cognitive processing than auditory speech which leads to increased listener effort and reduced information recall. In our project, we propose to gain a comprehensive account of older people's speech production and perception in situations involving communication with another individual. Adults with age-related hearing loss and the rarer group of older adults with normal hearing will be included as well as younger adult controls. In Study 1, communication with another speaker, while reading sentences or completing a problem-solving task, will either be in good listening conditions, where both speakers hear each other normally, or in adverse conditions, where the participant has to get their message across to another speaker who has a simulated hearing loss or when both are speaking in a noisy background. These comparisons will enable us to get a sense of the degree to which an older person is able to adapt their speech to overcome difficult listening conditions, a skill which is of paramount importance in speech communication in everyday life. We will obtain high-quality digital recordings of the participants' speech but will also, via sensors placed on the neck, record information about their vocal fold vibration, which determines the quality of their voice. Video recordings will also be analysed to investigate whether older speakers make use of eye gaze and head gestures to signal aspects of discourse such as turn-taking and back-channelling (e.g., saying 'okay' to signal understanding), to the same degree as younger speakers. In Study 2, older and younger listeners with normal and impaired hearing will be presented some of the sentence materials recorded in Study 1 by all speaker groups in good and adverse listening conditions. Tests will be presented in both auditory-alone and audiovisual conditions. Intelligibility tests will be run to see what impact age, hearing status and visual cues have on speech understanding and to see whether the 'clear speech' adaptations made by older speakers to counter the effects of poor communication conditions gives the same benefit to that of younger speakers. Sentence recall tests will also be run to investigate whether the listening effort is reduced listening to 'clear speech'. This project will lead to a better understanding of the effects of ageing on speech communication and of the various contributing factors to potentially degraded speech communication in a population of 'healthy aged' individuals. These benchmarks will be of use for practitioners such as speech and language therapists and audiologists who work on aspects of communication with older people who have health complications. A better understanding of communication difficulties that older individuals experience and of their strategies to overcome these difficulties will also assist professionals such as social workers and care professionals who work to improve quality of life for older people, as well as developers of speech technology devices for telemedicine and remote monitoring. Importantly, this research will also contribute to our basic understanding of speech perception and production development across the lifespan.

The National Health and Nutrition Examination Surveys (NHANES) is a program of studies designed to assess the health and nutritional status of adults and children in the United States. The NHANES combines personal interviews and physical examinations, which focus on different population groups or health topics. These surveys have been conducted by the National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS) on a periodic basis from 1971 to 1994. In 1999 the NHANES became a continuous program with a changing focus on a variety of health and nutrition measurements which were designed to meet current and emerging concerns. The surveys examine a nationally representative sample of approximately 5,000 persons each year. These persons are located in counties across the United States, 15 of which are visited each year. For NHANES 2005-2006, there were 10,348 persons selected for the sample, 10,122 of those were interviewed (79.3 percent) and 9,643 (75.6 percent) were examined in the mobile examination centers (MEC). Many of the NHANES 2005-2006 questions were also asked in NHANES II 1976-1980, Hispanic HANES 1982-1984, NHANES III 1988-1994, and NHANES 1999-2004. New questions were added to the survey based on recommendations from survey collaborators, NCHS staff, and other interagency work groups. As in past health examination surveys, data were collected on the prevalence of chronic conditions in the population. Estimates for previously undiagnosed conditions, as well as those known to and reported by survey respondents, are produced through the survey. Risk factors, those aspects of a person's lifestyle, constitution, heredity, or environment that may increase the chances of developing a certain disease or condition, were examined. Data on smoking, alcohol consumption, sexual practices, drug use, physical fitness and activity, weight, and dietary intake were collected. Information on certain aspects of reproductive health, such as use of oral contraceptives and breastfeeding practices, were also collected. The diseases, medical conditions, and health indicators that were studied include: anemia, cardiovascular disease, diabetes and lower extremity disease, environmental exposures, equilibrium, hearing loss, infectious diseases and immunization, kidney disease, mental health and cognitive functioning, nutrition, obesity, oral health, osteoporosis, physical fitness and physical functioning, reproductive history and sexual behavior, respiratory disease (asthma, chronic bronchitis, emphysema), sexually transmitted diseases, skin diseases, and vision. The sample for the survey was selected to represent the United States population of all ages. Special emphasis in the 2005-2006 NHANES was on adolescent health and the health of older Americans. To produce reliable statistics for these groups, adolescents aged 15-19 years and persons aged 60 years and older were over-sampled for the survey. African Americans and Mexican Americans were also over-sampled to enable accurate estimates for these groups. Several important areas in adolescent health, including nutrition and fitness and other aspects of growth and development, were addressed. Since the United States has experienced dramatic growth in the number of older people during the twentieth century, the aging population has major implications for health care needs, public policy, and research priorities. NCHS is working with public health agencies to increase the knowledge of the health status of older Americans. NHANES has a primary role in this endeavor. In the examination, all participants visit the physician who takes their pulse or blood pressure. Dietary interviews and body measurements are included for everyone. All but the very young have a blood sample taken and see the dentist. Depending upon the age of the participant, the rest of the examination includes tests and procedures to assess the various aspects of health listed above. Usually, the older the individual, the more extensive the examination. Some persons who are unable or unwilling to come to the examination center may be given a less extensive examination in their homes. Demographic data file variables are grouped into three broad categories: (1) Status Variables: provide core information on the survey participant. Examples of the core variables include interview status, examination status, and sequence number. (Sequence numb

Abstract Objectives: To provide an overview of the main evidence-based recommendations for the diagnosis of hearing loss in children and adolescents aged 0–18 years. Methods: Task force members were educated on knowledge synthesis methods, including electronic database search, review and selection of relevant citations, and critical appraisal of selected studies. Articles written in English or Portuguese on childhood hearing loss were eligible for inclusion. The American College of Physicians’ guideline grading system and the American Thyroid Association’s guideline criteria were used for critical appraisal of evidence and recommendations for therapeutic interventions. Results: The topics were divided into 2 parts: (1) treatment of sensorineural hearing loss: individual hearing aids, bilateral cochlear implants, cochlear implants in young children, unilateral hearing loss, and auditory neuropathy spectrum disorder; and (2) treatment of conductive/mixed hearing loss: external/middle ear malformations, ventilation tube insertion, and tympanoplasty in children. Conclusions: In children with hearing loss, in addition to speech therapy, Hearing AIDS (HAs) or implantable systems may be indicated. Even in children with profound hearing loss, both the use of HAs and behavioral assessments while using the device are important.

BackgroundNoise-induced hearing loss (NIHL) has always been a global public health problem, which is related to noise exposure and genetic factors. Many researchers have tried to identify the polymorphisms that cause different individuals' susceptibility to NIHL. We conducted a meta-analysis of the most frequently studied polymorphisms to identify those genes that may be associated with NIHL and may provide value in risk prevention.MethodsPubMed, China National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI) database, Embase, Wang Fang, Web of Science and Cochrane library were searched, and qualified studies on the correlation between polymorphism and NIHL susceptibility were screened, and then polymorphisms cited in at least three studies were selected for meta-analysis. Fixed- or random-effects models were used to calculate odds ratios and 95% confidence intervals. Statistical I2 tests and sensitivity analyses were used to detect interstudy heterogeneity and test the statistical stability of overall estimates, respectively. Egger's tests were applied to detect publication bias among included studies. All of the above analyses were performed using stata 17.0.Results64 genes were initially selected and introduced in 74 papers. Among them, 10 genes (and 25 polymorphisms) have been reported in more than 3 papers. Twenty five polymorphisms participated in the meta-analysis. Of the 25 polymorphisms, only 5 were significantly associated with the risk of AR: rs611419 (GRHL2) polymorphism and rs3735715 polymorphism (GRHL2), rs208679 polymorphism (CAT), rs3813346 polymorphism (EYA4) were significantly associated with the susceptibility of NIHL, rs2227956 polymorphism (HSP70) was significantly associated with the susceptibility of white population NIHL, and the remaining 20 gene polymorphisms were not significantly associated with NIHL.ConclusionWe found polymorphisms that are valuable for the prevention of NIHL and polymorphisms that are not related to NIHL. This is the first step to establish an effective risk prediction system for the population, especially for high-risk groups, which may help us better identify and prevent the occurrence of NIHL. In addition, our research results contribute to the in-depth exploration of NIHL.Systematic review registrationhttps://inplasy.com/inplasy-2023-6-0003/, identifier INPLASY202360003.

BackgroundThere have been reports of otolaryngological adverse event following immunization (AEFI) such as instances of olfactory and gustatory dysfunction following COVID-19 vaccination. This study aimed to analyze otolaryngological AEFIs following COVID-19 vaccination.MethodsThis study was conducted with a secondary data analysis that the Vaccine Adverse Events Reporting System (VAERS) and the COVID-19 Data Tracker, which are both administered by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in the US. Using Medical Dictionary for Regulatory Activities (MedDRA) concepts, AEFIs included: Considering the overall frequency and similarity of symptoms in the first 153 PTs, they were grouped into major 19 AEFIs groups. The incidence rates (IRs) of AEFIs per 100,000 were calculated on individual and cumulative AEFIs levels, involving people who received complete primary series and an updated bivalent booster dose with one of the available COVID-19 vaccines in the US. The proportions of AEFIs by age, sex, and vaccine manufacturer were reported. We also calculated the proportional reporting ratio (PRR) of AEFIs.ResultsWe identified 106,653 otorhinolaryngologic AEFIs from the VAERS database, and a total of 226,593,618 people who received complete primary series in the US. Overall, the IR of total Otorhinolaryngologic AEFIs was 47.068 of CPS (completed primary series) and 7.237 UBB (updated bivalent booster) per 100,000. For most symptoms, being female was associated with statistically significant higher AEFIs. Upon examining the impact of different vaccine manufacturers, the researchers found that Janssen’s vaccine exhibited higher IRs for hearing loss (5.871), tinnitus (19.182), ear infection (0.709), dizziness (121.202), sinusitis (2.088), epistaxis (4.251), anosmia (5.264), snoring (0.734), allergies (5.555), and pharyngitis (5.428). The highest PRRs were for Anosmia (3.617), Laryngopharyngeal Reflux - Acid Reflux (2.632), and Tinnitus -Ringing in the ears (2.343), in that order, with these three significantly incidence than other background noises.ConclusionThis study, utilizing an extensive sample sizes, represents a significant step toward comprehensively characterizing the otolaryngological AEFIs associated with COVID-19 vaccinations. This large-scale analysis aims to move beyond isolated case reports and anecdotal evidence, providing a robust and detailed portrait of the otolaryngological AEFIs landscape in response to COVID-19 vaccinations.