Association between blood volatile organic aromatic compound concentrations and hearing loss in US adults

Senlin Wang; Jing Luo; Fang Zhang; Ruimin Zhang; Wantao Ju; Nianwei Wu; Jianhui Zhang; Yanjun Liu

doi:10.1186/s12889-024-18065-0

Association between blood volatile organic aromatic compound concentrations and hearing loss in US adults

BMC Public Health. 2024 Feb 27;24(1):623. doi: 10.1186/s12889-024-18065-0.

Authors

Senlin Wang^#^{1

2}, Jing Luo^#^{1

3}, Fang Zhang³, Ruimin Zhang^{1

2}, Wantao Ju⁴, Nianwei Wu^{5

6

7}, Jianhui Zhang⁸, Yanjun Liu⁹

Affiliations

¹ College of Medicine, Southwest Jiaotong University, Chengdu, China.
² The Center of Gastrointestinal and Minimally Invasive Surgery, Department of General Surgery, The Third People's Hospital of Chengdu, The Affiliated Hospital of Southwest Jiaotong University, Chengdu, China.
³ Department of Otolaryngology head and neck surgery, The Third People's Hospital of Chengdu, Affiliated Hospital of Southwest Jiaotong University, Chengdu, Sichuan, 610031, China.
⁴ School of Life Science and Engineering, Southwest Jiaotong University, Chengdu, China.
⁵ Department of General Surgery, Center for Obesity and Metabolic Health, The Third People's Hospital of Chengdu, The Affiliated Hospital of Southwest Jiaotong University, Chengdu, China. wunianwei@swjtu.edu.cn.
⁶ Research Center for Obesity and Metabolic Health, College of Medicine, Southwest Jiaotong University, Chengdu, China. wunianwei@swjtu.edu.cn.
⁷ Medical Research Center, The Third People's Hospital of Chengdu, The Affiliated Hospital of Southwest Jiaotong University, Chengdu, China. wunianwei@swjtu.edu.cn.
⁸ Department of Otolaryngology head and neck surgery, The Third People's Hospital of Chengdu, Affiliated Hospital of Southwest Jiaotong University, Chengdu, Sichuan, 610031, China. zhangjianhuient@126.com.
⁹ The Center of Gastrointestinal and Minimally Invasive Surgery, Department of General Surgery, The Third People's Hospital of Chengdu, The Affiliated Hospital of Southwest Jiaotong University, Chengdu, China. liuyanjun_001@163.com.

^# Contributed equally.

Abstract

Objective: Benzene, ethylbenzene, meta/para-xylene, and ortho-xylene, collectively referred to as benzene, ethylbenzene, and xylene (BEX), constitute the main components of volatile organic aromatic compounds (VOACs) and can have adverse effects on human health. The relationship between exposure to BEX and hearing loss (HL) in the adult U.S. population was aimed to be assessed.

Methods: Cross-sectional data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) for the years 2003-2004, 2011-2012, and 2015-2016 were analyzed. This dataset included complete demographic characteristics, pure-tone audiometry measurements, and volatile organic compound detection data from the NHANES database. A weighted multivariate logistic regression model was employed to investigate the associations between blood BEX concentrations HL, low-frequency hearing loss (SFHL), and high-frequency hearing loss (HFHL).

Results: 2174 participants were included, with weighted prevalence rates of HL, SFHL, and HFHL being 46.81%, 25.23%, and 45.86%, respectively. Exposure to benzene, ethylbenzene, meta/para-xylene, and ortho-xylene, and cumulative BEX concentrations increased the risk of hearing loss (odds ratios [ORs] were 1.36, 1.22, 1.42, 1.23, and 1.31, respectively; all P < 0.05). In the analysis with SFHL as the outcome, ethylbenzene, m-/p-xylene, o-xylene, benzene, and overall BEX increased the risk (OR 1.26, 1.21, 1.28, 1.20, and 1.25, respectively; all P < 0.05). For HFHL, exposure to ethylbenzene, m-/p-xylene, o-xylene, benzene, and overall BEX increased the risk (OR 1.36, 1.22, 1.42, 1.22, and 1.31, respectively; all P < 0.05).

Conclusion: Our study indicated that a positive correlation between individual or cumulative exposure to benzene, ethylbenzene, meta/para-xylene, and ortho-xylene and the risk of HL, SFHL, and HFHL. Further research is imperative to acquire a more comprehensive understanding of the mechanisms by which organic compounds, notably BEX, in causing hearing loss and to validate these findings in longitudinal environmental studies.

Keywords: Epidemiology; Hearing loss; NHANES; Volatile organic aromatic compound concentrations.

MeSH terms

Adult
Benzene / toxicity
Benzene Derivatives*
Cross-Sectional Studies
Deafness*
Hearing Loss* / chemically induced
Hearing Loss* / epidemiology
Humans
Nutrition Surveys
Volatile Organic Compounds* / adverse effects
Xylenes / toxicity

Substances

4-xylene
ethylbenzene
2-xylene
Benzene
Volatile Organic Compounds
Xylenes
3-xylene
Benzene Derivatives