A 2014 study of patients with osteoporosis — a bone density disease that affects about 54 million Americans — found they had a higher incidence of sensorineural hearing loss. Researchers attributed the increase to metabolic changes and possible degeneration of the ossicles, or tiny middle ear bones, which are integral to healthy ear function.
The same study also found tinnitus complaints were “remarkably higher” in people with osteoporosis.
If you’re 50 and older, you should get a regular hearing screening if you have hearing challenges — just as you should ask your doctor about a bone density test if you have a broken bone.
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