Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jun 13, 2026
An Automated System for Sound Localization Testing in Hearing-Impaired Listeners
Published on: March 13, 2026
Prevalence of asymmetric hearing loss in Korean adults
Jaeman Park1, Dongjun Woo2, Jiyeon Park2
1Department of Otorhinolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, College of Medicine, Korea University, Seoul, South Korea.
Background:
Representative data on asymmetric hearing loss (AHL) in Korea remain limited.
Aims/Objectives:
To estimate AHL prevalence among Korean adults aged ≥40 years and characterize age-standardized prevalence, frequency-specific asymmetry, laterality, and interaural difference (IAD) distribution.
Material And Methods:
Data from the 2022-2023 Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey were analyzed. Adults aged ≥40 years with complete bilateral pure-tone audiometry and type A or type C tympanograms were included. AHL was defined as an absolute IAD ≥15 dB HL in the four-frequency pure-tone average. Weighted analyses accounted for the complex sampling design.
Results:
Among 6,574 participants, 447 had AHL. Weighted prevalence was 6.5% (95% confidence interval [CI], 5.9-7.2%), and directly age-standardized prevalence was 6.0% (approximate 95% CI, 5.3-6.6%). Prevalence increased from 3.2% at 40-49 years to 11.9% at ≥80 years. Older age and male sex were independently associated with AHL; occupational noise exposure was not. Frequency-specific asymmetry was most common at 4 kHz. Among AHL cases, left-sided AHL predominated, and IADs were concentrated near the lower end of the diagnostic range.
Conclusions And Significance:
AHL increased with age and showed high-frequency and left-sided predominance. These findings provide population-based reference data and support cautious interpretation of criterion-defined AHL.
