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. 2011 Feb 23:11:130.
doi: 10.1186/1471-2458-11-130.

Stress and prevalence of hearing problems in the Swedish working population

Dan Hasson  1 , Töres Theorell, Martin Benka Wallén, Constanze Leineweber, Barbara Canlon
Affiliations

Stress and prevalence of hearing problems in the Swedish working population

Dan Hasson et al. BMC Public Health. .

Abstract

Background: Current human and experimental studies are indicating an association between stress and hearing problems; however potential risk factors have not been established. Hearing problems are projected to become among the top ten disabilities according to the WHO in the near future. Therefore a better understanding of the relationships between stress and hearing is warranted. Here we describe the prevalence of two common hearing problems, i.e. hearing complaints and tinnitus, in relation to different work-and health-related stressors.

Methods: A total of 18,734 individuals were invited to participate in the study, out of which 9,756 (52%) enrolled.

Results: The results demonstrate a clear and mostly linear relationship between higher prevalence of hearing problems (tinnitus or hearing loss or both) and different stressors, e.g. occupational, poorer self-rated health, long-term illness, poorer sleep quality, and higher burnout scores.

Conclusions: The present study unambiguously demonstrates associations between hearing problems and various stressors that have not been previously described for the auditory system. These findings will open new avenues for future investigations.

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Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Prevalence of hearing problems in percent in relation to different ratings of SRH. The Kendall's τ-b value is indicated by a "τ".
Figure 2
Figure 2
Prevalence of hearing problems in percent in relation to different ratings of sleep quality. The Kendall's τ-b value is indicated by a "τ".
Figure 3
Figure 3
Prevalence of hearing problems in percent in relation to different burnout scores (higher quartiles indicate more severe burnout symptoms). The Kendall's τ-b value is indicated by a "τ".
Figure 4
Figure 4
Prevalence of hearing problems in percent in relation to symptoms of long-lasting stress (higher quartiles indicate more stress symptoms). The Kendall's τ-b value is indicated by a "τ".
Figure 5
Figure 5
Prevalence of hearing problems in percent in relation to performance-based self-esteem (higher quartiles indicate higher PBS). The Kendall's τ-b value is indicated by a "τ".
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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