High-Frequency Hearing Loss, Hippocampal Volume, and Motoric Cognitive Risk Syndrome in Older Adults in China: A Population-Based Study

Article type: Research Article

Authors: Zhang, Qinghua^{a; b; c} | Zhao, Shicheng^b | Feng, Jianli^d | Wang, Shanshan^{a; b; c} | Song, Lin^{a; b; c} | Han, Qi^e | Cong, Lin^{a; b; c} | Wang, Yongxiang^{a; b; c} | Du, Yifeng^{a; b; c; *} | Qiu, Chengxuan^{a; f; *}

Affiliations: [a] Key Laboratory of Endocrine Glucose & Lipids Metabolism and Brain Aging, Ministry of Education, Department of Neurology, Shandong Provincial Hospital Affiliated to Shandong First Medical University, Jinan, Shandong, China | [b] Department of Neurology, Shandong Provincial Hospital, Cheeloo College of Medicine, Shandong University, Jinan, Shandong, P. R. China | [c] Shandong Provincial Clinical Research Center for Geriatric Neurological Diseases, Jinan, Shandong, P. R. China | [d] Department of Neurology, Shandong Second Provincial General Hospital, Shandong Provincial ENT Hospital, Jinan, Shandong, The People’s Republic of China | [e] Department of Neurology, Huashan Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai, The People’s Republic of China | [f] Aging Research Center and Center for Alzheimer Research, Department of Neurobiology, Care Sciences and Society, Karolinska Institutet-Stockholm University, Stockholm, Sweden

Correspondence: [*] Correspondence to: Prof. Yifeng Du, Department of Neurology, Provincial Hospital affiliated to Shandong First Medical University, No. 324 Jingwuweiqi Road, Jinan, Shandong 250021, P. R. China. E-mail: du-yifeng@hotmail.com. or Dr. Chengxuan Qiu, E-mail: chengxuan.qiu@ki.se.

Abstract: Background:Little is known about the associations of hearing loss, hippocampal volume, and motoric cognitive risk syndrome (MCR) in older adults. Objective:We aimed to investigate the associations of hearing loss with MCR and hippocampal volume; and the interaction of hearing loss with hippocampal volume on MCR. Methods:This population-based cross-sectional study included 2,540 dementia-free participants (age≥60 years; 56.5% women) in the baseline examination of the Multimodal Interventions to Delay Dementia and Disability in rural China. Data were collected through face-to-face interviews, clinical examination, and laboratory tests. Hearing function was assessed using pure tone audiometry test. In the subsample (n = 661), hippocampal volume was assessed on structural magnetic resonance images. Data were analyzed with logistic regression models. Results:In the total sample, MCR was diagnosed in 246 persons (9.7%). High-frequency hearing loss was significantly associated with an increased likelihood of MCR and slow gait. In the subsample, the restricted cubic spline plots indicated an inverted U-shaped nonlinear relationship between high-frequency hearing performance and hippocampal volume. Moreover, greater hippocampal volume was significantly associated with a deduced likelihood of MCR and subjective cognitive decline (SCD). In addition, there were statistical interactions of high-frequency hearing loss with hippocampal volume on MCR and slow gait (p for interaction < 0.05), such that the associations were statistically significant only among participants free of high-frequency hearing loss. Conclusions:High-frequency hearing loss was associated with an increased likelihood of MCR in older adults. The hippocampus might play a part in the relationship of high-frequency hearing loss and MCR.

Keywords: Aging, Alzheimer’s disease, hearing loss, hippocampal volume, motoric cognitive risk syndrome

DOI: 10.3233/JAD-240522

Journal: Journal of Alzheimer's Disease, vol. 101, no. 2, pp. 487-498, 2024