Hearing thresholds elevation and potential association with emotional problems among 1,914 children in Beijing, China
Huidi Xiao1, Nubiya Amaerjiang1, Weiwei Wang2
1Department of Child, Adolescent Health and Maternal Care, School of Public Health, Capital Medical University, Beijing, China.
Insights
Hearing loss in school-aged children is linked to emotional problems. This study found that poorer hearing thresholds correlate with increased emotional symptoms, particularly in girls, highlighting the need for early detection and intervention.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric audiology
- Child psychology
- Public health
Background:
- School-aged children can face both hearing loss and emotional difficulties.
- A bidirectional link between hearing loss and emotional issues is established in elderly populations.
- Research is needed to understand this association in children.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the relationship between hearing thresholds and emotional problems in school-aged children.
- To analyze specific emotional symptoms associated with hearing impairments.
Main Methods:
- Utilized data from the Beijing Child Growth and Health Cohort (PROC) study.
- Conducted pure tone audiometry for hearing screenings and the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ) for emotional assessment.
- Employed generalized linear regression analysis on imputed datasets (n=1,914).
Main Results:
- A 91.5% hearing screening pass rate and 55.8% SDQ abnormal total difficulties rate were observed.
- Emotional symptoms showed a positive association with average hearing thresholds in both left (β=0.24) and right (β=0.18) ears.
- Specific symptoms like fears in boys and worries/unhappiness in girls correlated with poorer hearing thresholds.
Conclusions:
- The co-occurrence of hearing and emotional problems in 6-8-year-old Beijing children warrants attention.
- Undiscovered hearing loss and emotional issues require integrated management.
- Understanding comorbidity factors is crucial for effective interventions.
Objectives:
School-aged children may experience hearing loss and emotional problems. Previous studies have shown a bidirectional relationship between hearing loss and emotional problems in the elderly population, and we aimed to analyze the association between hearing thresholds and emotional problems in school-aged children.
Methods:
Based on the Beijing Child Growth and Health Cohort (PROC) study, the hearing screenings were conducted in November 2019 using pure tone audiometry. A total of 1,877 parents completed the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ) to assess children's emotional and behavioral status. We used generalized linear regression analysis to assess the potential association of emotional problems with hearing thresholds, based on multiple imputed datasets with a sample size of 1,914.
Results:
The overall pass rate of hearing screening was 91.5%. The abnormal rate of SDQ total difficulties was 55.8%. Emotional symptoms were positively associated with left ear average hearing thresholds (β = 0.24, 95%CI: 0.08-0.40), and right ear average hearing thresholds (β = 0.18, 95%CI: 0.04-0.32). Conduct problems, hyperactivity/inattention, peer problems, and prosocial behaviors had no association with the pass rate of the hearing screening. Regarding emotional symptoms, boys with many fears and who are easily scared coincided with increased right ear average hearing thresholds (β = 0.67, 95%CI: 0.01-1.33). Girls having many worries, frequently feeling unhappy and downhearted were positively associated with left and right ear average hearing thresholds, respectively (β = 0.96, 95%CI: 0.20-1.73; β = 0.72, 95%CI: 0.07-1.37).
Conclusions:
The co-occurrence of hearing problems and emotional problems of children aged 6-8 in Beijing attracts attention. It is important to address undiscovered hearing loss and emotional problems from the perspective of comorbidity driving factors.
