Bidirectional causality between idiopathic sudden sensorineural hearing loss and depression: a Mendelian...

Area of Science:

• Genetics
• Epidemiology
• Otolaryngology
• Psychiatry

Background:

• Idiopathic Sudden Sensorineural Hearing Loss (ISSHL) is an unexplained, rapid hearing loss.
• Depression is a prevalent mental health condition and a major cause of disability worldwide.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the potential bidirectional causal relationship between ISSHL and depression.
• To determine if genetic predisposition to ISSHL influences depression risk.
• To assess if genetic susceptibility to depression impacts ISSHL risk.

Main Methods:

• Employed a two-sample Mendelian randomization approach.
• Utilized genome-wide association study (GWAS) summary statistics for ISSHL and depression in European populations.
• Performed inverse variance weighting (IVW) and sensitivity analyses (MR-Egger, weighted median, leave-one-out).

Main Results:

• Found a significant causal association where genetic susceptibility to ISSHL increases the risk of depression (OR=1.037, P=0.030).
• Genetic predisposition to depression did not show a significant causal effect on ISSHL risk (OR=1.134, P=0.350).
• Sensitivity analyses confirmed the robustness of these findings.

Conclusions:

• Evidence suggests a causal link where ISSHL can lead to or exacerbate depression.
• The reverse relationship, where depression causes ISSHL, was not supported by the genetic data.
• These findings highlight the impact of hearing loss on mental well-being.