Uncontrolled diabetes increases risk of hearing loss; doctors call for more awareness, screening Premium

Uncontrolled diabetes increases hearing loss risk; experts urge for hearing screening in routine diabetes care for holistic treatment.

Uncontrolled diabetes increases the risk of hearing loss due to the damage high blood sugar causes to blood vessels and nerves essential for hearing. Despite this, hearing health is rarely prioritised in diabetes care, but now, doctors are calling for the government to recognise and include hearing screening in routine diabetes care.

Stating that access to holistic diabetes care is crucial to address the overlooked link between diabetes and hearing loss, a condition affecting several diabetics worldwide, Rajesh Kesari, executive council member, Research Society for Study of Diabetes in India, Delhi Chapter, says that there is a close relationship between diabetes and hearing loss. Hearing loss occurs twice as frequently in patients with uncontrolled diabetes as compared to the non-diabetic population, he adds.

Dr. Kesari explains that people with high sugar levels frequently have dryness in their ears, frequent infections, both fungal and bacterial infections etc. “It is important for people with diabetes to keep their blood sugar under control because it has implications not only for other vital organ systems like the heart, blood vessels, kidneys, eyes and legs, but it is also very important to preserve our hearing and maintain our balance,” he says.

“Diabetic neuropathy and nerve damage is a well-known complication of diabetes, so it can affect nerve signals from the inner ear to the brain, causing hearing loss. Diabetes is a metabolic vascular dysfunction of the whole body, which includes the inner ear, and so, hearing loss can increase as far as age is concerned as well. It is however, a much -ignored symptom,” says Anil Gomber, senior consultant, internal medicine and diabetology, Apollo Spectra Hospital.

Anoop Misra, endocrinologist and director at Fortis C-Doc, adds: “One established problem in diabetics is that they get more ear infections if their diabetes is uncontrolled.’’

The World Health Organization (WHO) also notes that while the exact mechanism that links diabetes to hearing loss is unknown, it is possible that high or low blood sugar levels damage the nerves and small blood vessels in the inner ear. This can impact how nerve signals travel from the inner ear to the brain, leading to hearing loss.

The WHO estimates that 466 million people worldwide have disabling hearing loss and acknowledges that people with diabetes are twice as likely to experience hearing loss than those who don’t have diabetes.