Related Experiment Video
Updated: Aug 26, 2026

Simple Surgical Induction of Conductive Hearing Loss with Verification Using Otoscope Visualization and Behavioral Clap Startle Response in Rat
Published on: October 26, 2019
Diphtheria and hearing loss
C R Schubert1, K J Cruickshanks, T L Wiley
1Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences, University of Wisconsin, 610 N Walnut Street, 460 WARF, Madison, WI 53705, USA. schubert@epi.ophth.wisc.edu
Objective:
To determine if infectious diseases usually experienced in childhood have an effect on hearing ability later in life.
Methods:
The Epidemiology of Hearing Loss Study (N = 3,753) is a population-based study of age-related hearing loss in adults aged 48 to 92 years in Beaver Dam, Wisconsin. As part of this study, infectious disease history was obtained and hearing was tested using pure-tone audiometry. Hearing loss was defined as a pure-tone average of thresholds at 500 Hz, 1,000 Hz, 2,000 Hz, and 4,000 Hz greater than 25 decibels hearing level in either ear.
Results:
After adjusting for confounders, only a history of diphtheria (n = 37) was associated with hearing loss (odds ratio [OR] 2.79; 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.05, 7.36). There was no relationship between hearing loss and history of chickenpox, measles, mumps, pertussis, polio, rheumatic fever, rubella, or scarlet fever. Only two participants with a history of diphtheria and hearing loss reported having a hearing loss before age 20.
Conclusions:
Diphtheria in childhood may have consequences for hearing that do not become apparent until later in life. A possible biological mechanism for a diphtheria effect on hearing ability exists: The toxin produced by the Corynebacterium diphtheriae bacteria can cause damage to cranial nerves and therefore may affect the auditory neural pathway. These data may have important implications for areas facing a resurgence of diphtheria cases.
More Related Videos
Related Concept Videos
Vaccinations
Respiratory System Abnormal Finding II: Palpation and Auscultation
Palpation Findings
During a respiratory assessment, palpation can reveal several vital abnormalities:
Tonsillitis I: Introduction
Etiology
Three primary contributing factors have been identified.
Hypersensitivity Reactions: Delayed Hypersensitivity Reactions
Rheumatic Heart Disease I: Introduction
Diphtheria

