Poor hearing ‘heightens risk of heart failure’

Poor hearing increases a person’s risk of developing heart failure, according to a study.

Researchers suggest the psychological distress caused by hearing impairment plays a “notable” role.

For the study, experts in China analysed UK Biobank data from 164,431 people who had completed tests designed to determine hearing ability.

Of the total, some 160,062 did not wear hearing aids.

They were put into three groups based on their performance in a digit triplet test (DTT), which screens for hearing problems by using random combinations of digits against background noise.

All of the people initially included in the analysis did not have heart failure, but, over a follow-up period of more than 11 years, some 4,449 developed the condition.

Heart failure happens when the heart cannot pump blood effectively, leading to symptoms like fatigue, shortness of breath, and swelling in the legs and ankles.

It estimated that more than one million people in the UK have the long-term condition.

The researchers found those who had a higher speech reception threshold (SRT) – meaning they needed louder speech to understand words – had an increased risk of heart failure.

They said: “Compared with those with normal hearing, participants with insufficient hearing, poor hearing, or hearing aid use had higher heart failure risks.”

High SRT levels were also associated with psychological distress, social isolation and neuroticism among those who did not wear hearing aids.

The researchers added: “We have been the first to demonstrate that poor hearing ability is significantly associated with a higher risk of incident heart failure in the general population.

“Psychological factors, especially psychological distress, play a significant mediating role in this association.

“If further confirmed, hearing impairment may be a potential risk factor or marker for incident heart failure in the general population, highlighting the importance of integrating hearing health assessments into broader cardiovascular risk evaluation frameworks.

“Moreover, strengthening psychological intervention in people with hearing impairment may be an important path and strategy to reduce the risk of heart failure.”