Apolipoprotein E Allele and Hearing Thresholds in Older Adults

David J Mener; Joshua Betz; Kristine Yaffe; Tamara B Harris; Elizabeth P Helzner; Suzanne Satterfield; Denise K Houston; Elsa S Strotmeyer; Sheila R Pratt; Eleanor M Simonsick; Frank R Lin; Health ABC Study

doi:10.1177/1533317514537549

Apolipoprotein E Allele and Hearing Thresholds in Older Adults

Am J Alzheimers Dis Other Demen. 2016 Feb;31(1):34-9. doi: 10.1177/1533317514537549. Epub 2014 Jun 6.

Authors

Affiliations

¹ Department of Otolaryngology-Head & Neck Surgery, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA.
² Department of Biostatistics, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, MD, USA Center on Aging and Health, Johns Hopkins Medical Institutions, Baltimore, MD, USA.
³ Departments of Psychiatry, Neurology, and Epidemiology, University of California, San Francisco, CA, USA Departments of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, University of California, San Francisco, CA, USA.
⁴ Laboratory of Epidemiology, Demography, and Biometry, National Institute on Aging, Baltimore, MD, USA.
⁵ Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, State University of New York, Downstate Medical Center, Brooklyn, NY, USA.
⁶ Department of Preventive Medicine, University of Tennessee, Memphis, TN, USA.
⁷ Wake Forest School of Medicine, Sticht Center on Aging, Winston Salem, NC, USA.
⁸ Center for Aging and Population Health, Department of Epidemiology, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
⁹ Geriatric Research Education and Clinical Center, VA Pittsburgh Healthcare Center, Pittsburgh, PA, USA Department of Communication Science & Disorders, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA.
¹⁰ Intramural Research Program, National Institute on Aging, Baltimore, MD, USA.

Abstract

Background: Whether apolipoprotein E (APOE) E4 allele status which is associated with an increased risk of cognitive decline is also associated with hearing impairment is unknown.

Methods: We studied 1833 men and women enrolled in the Health, Aging and Body Composition study. Regression models adjusted for demographic and cardiovascular risk factors were used to assess the cross-sectional association of APOE-E4 status with individual pure tone hearing thresholds and the 4-frequency pure tone average (0.5-4 kHz) in the better hearing ear.

Results: Compared to participants with no APOE-E4 alleles, participants with 1 allele had better thresholds at 4.0 kHz (β = -2.72 dB, P = .013) and 8.0 kHz (β = -3.05 kHz, P = .006), and participants with 2 alleles had better hearing thresholds at 1.0 kHz (β = -8.56 dB, P = .021).

Conclusion: Our results suggest that APOE-E4 allele status may be marginally associated with better hearing thresholds in older adults.

Keywords: aging; apolipoprotein E; cognition; dementia; hearing loss; hearing thresholds.

Publication types

Research Support, N.I.H., Extramural
Research Support, N.I.H., Intramural
Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

Aged
Aged, 80 and over
Aging
Alleles*
Apolipoprotein E4 / genetics*
Cognition Disorders / genetics
Cross-Sectional Studies
Female
Hearing Loss / genetics*
Humans
Male

Substances

Apolipoprotein E4

Abstract

Publication types

MeSH terms

Substances

Grants and funding