Relation between Hypertension and Hearing Loss: A Study of Hypertensive Patients in a Tertiary Hospital in Lagos, Nigeria

BACKGROUND: Hypertension is a major non-communicable disease of public health concern. In Nigeria, the rate is between 28% and 42.2%. Hypertension or the prolonged use of some antihypertensive drugs has been associated with hearing loss in studies. There is a paucity of studies on this in our environment. AIMS: Therefore, this study aims to evaluate the relationship between hearing thresholds and hypertension. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This was a hospital-based cross-sectional comparative study of hypertensive and non-hypertensive patients. Ethical approval for the study was obtained. Informed consent was obtained from the participants. A researcher-administered structured pro forma was utilised to obtain demographic and medical history data. Blood pressure measurement and pure-tone audiometry were performed on all the participants. Data were analysed using SPSS version 25. RESULTS: One hundred and twenty-eight participants each were recruited from the hypertensive and control groups for the study. The age range of the hypertension group was 27-60 years. The frequency of hearing loss amongst the hypertension and control groups was 47.7% and 15.6%, respectively (P < 0.001). The mean pure-tone average for the hypertension group was 29.2 dB ± 18.5/28.3 dB ± 20.5 and 21.6 dB ± 8.7/20.6 dB ± 8 in the right and left ears of the hypertensive and control groups, respectively. The frequency of hearing loss in the controlled and uncontrolled hypertensive subjects was 44.7% and 52%, respectively (P = 0.424). Hearing loss frequency was 50% in hypertensive subjects on diuretic and/or beta-blockers and 46% in those on other antihypertensive drugs (P = 0.650). CONCLUSION: The frequency of hearing loss in the hypertension group was significantly higher than in the control group.